It Lies In Our Genes
by AlecGateway
Summary: After being ripped from his family by the evil ghost King Plasmius, Danny Fenton ends up in the very city that lies under the protection of the Dark Knight himself. When Bruce Wayne mistakes him for his own ward, Danny might just be closer to family again than he thinks.
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

* * *

Danny Fenton was your average twelve-year-old.

He had two parents, a sister and two best friends that he loved to hang out with during his free time, just like he was doing this afternoon. The friends were sitting at a table in Amity Park's well known local, the Nasty Burger.

"So, your parents still working on that hole in your basement?"

Danny rolled his eyes.

"Yes, Sam. They're still working on the ghost portal."

Sam Manson was one of those best friends. She was what people call goth and her character seemed as hard and tough as her combat boots felt. Danny and Tucker were two of the few people who were allowed to see past that facade.

"Dude, you don't actually believe ghosts exist, do you?"

"Tuck, I know I'm not nearly as far as my parents, but from what I've seen of their notes and blueprints, the stuff they're dealing with is serious science."

"Whatever you say. You stick to ghosts, I stick to my babes. Don't you agree, Claire?"

Tucker held his PDA close and smiled lovingly. While Sam loved nature and magic and Danny loved science and space, Tucker was a total techno geek.

"What happened to Lucy?" Sam asked in a clearly amused tone.

Tucker looked sad suddenly.

"She became outdated, I'm afraid."

"Poor Lucy." Danny commented with a grin.

Like most times, their day had been nice and relaxed and neither of them had planned for it to end any different. But then Danny received a message. It was from his older sister Jazz, telling him to come home as soon as possible and that it was really important. Knowing that his sister never asked him such things without reason, he hurriedly excused himself from his friends and headed home.

Danny Fenton was your average twelve-year-old.

But that was about to change.

* * *

 **I do not own Danny Phantom or any of its characters. Neither do I own Young Justice or any of the DC Universe characters.**

 ** _After this the story's starting for real. I hope you're going to stick with me. :)_**

 **Alec  
**

 **[FaHa]**


	2. Chapter One

**Chapter One**

* * *

When he had gotten the message from Jazz's phone, he had expected a lot of things. This... was not one of them. At first the house had seemed empty, until he found himself in the building's basement. As soon as he was through the door, it fell shut behind him, a loud clicking sound telling him it was now locked. Danny stared in shock and anger at the floating being in the center of his parents' lab. It wasn't too difficult to figure out that the weird vampire guy was responsible for his father and sister sitting tied up and gagged in a cage on the far left side of the room. Then he noticed the device in the glowing figure's hand. His sister's phone. Danny narrowed his eyes.

"You sent that message?"

It came out as more of a statement than a question. Vampire guy chuckled.

"How clever of you, Daniel. I always knew you inherited your mother's intelligence instead of your father's stupidity."

Danny's eyes flickered to the cage holding his family members. His father and his sister, not his mother. This meant that either his mother was out of the house on coincidence, or that this guy had a thing for his mom. _Like this creepy billionaire that was friends with his parents._ Danny shuddered inwardly at the thought of Vlad Masters.

"How do you know my name? And what do you want from us?" Danny demanded.

He did not know how he did it, but he somehow managed to keep his voice steady through his fear. Vampire guy grinned, showing off his sharp white fangs in the process and floated closer to Danny.

"Oh, I don't care much for your idiot father or young Jasmine, really. In fact, I came here for you, my boy. Of course I would know the name of my future son, now wouldn't I?"

The Fentons' eyes widened. Danny could feel his heart beating faster and faster until he feared it might jump right out of his chest. He frantically tried to think of a way out of this situation, so far though coming up with nothing.

"I am not your son. And I won't ever be. If you think you could replace my father than you are one seriously crazed up fruit loop." Danny declared, earning concerned looks from his father and sister which he tried to ignore. He definitely couldn't lose it now. The newly defined fruit loop's expression darkened for a moment, almost making Danny regret his words, but as quickly as it had changed it went back to how it was before. Then he added a chuckle as if trying to hide his irritation.

"Don't worry, Daniel. You will learn to behave soon enough."

He floated down to the ground and began walking around Danny as if examining him. Danny's crystal blue eyes were blazing with anger and he had to concentrate to not lash out at the man - er, whatever he was - that was talking to him as if he owned him.

"You are mine now. Don't even bother resisting, you don't stand a chance against me." the... man drawled in this annoyingly arrogant voice of his.

Danny nearly laughed out loud. There was no way he was going to go with this creep willingly. However, this did not mean that he was not curious about who and what the one being - that had managed to fight himself to the very top of Danny's list of 'things and people I despise ' - was.

"Really? You must be powerful. What's your name?"

The man in question stopped in front of him and ascended a few feet in an attempt to look more intimidating, which - not that Danny was ever going to admit it - worked.

"I," He paused dramatically. "Am King Plasmius, ruler of the Infinite Realms. And you, Daniel, are going to be my heir."

Now Danny understood why the guy spoke and walked as if he were a king - he was a king.

"The... Infinite Realms?"

Plasmius looked at Danny like he were a three year old who had just asked what the word _chair_ meant.

"The ghost zone, Daniel. Your parents really did not teach you well. Ah, nevermind. You will learn everything now that you are under my care."

Confusion was now very much evident on Danny's face.

"How could I be your heir? Aside from the fact that I am not your son, I'm human. I doubt it is allowed to have a human king in the ghost zone. Wait, that means you're a ghost, right?"

Plasmius sighed loudly.

"Of _course_ I am. Do you not know _anything_? As for the problem concerning your species... we will proceed to that shortly."

The thought of what the ghost was planning to do to Danny made him feel sick. It must have shown, because Plasmius suddenly smirked evilly.

"Oh, don't worry, boy. It won't hurt. You will thank me afterwards."

Somehow Danny had the feeling that the man was lying. His suspicions would be proven right soon. Plasmius walked over to a table, his back now turned to Danny, who saw his chance and once more tried finding a way out of the situation. He had to admit, the guy was not stupid. The usually messy lab had been cleared out and was now void of all weaponry, much to Danny's dismay. He must have also tinkered with the basement's door, since it had locked upon his arrival. Unfortunately the room had no windows, either. He also didn't know what to do about his father and sister. Danny knew that he would be too slow if he sneeked over to them, but if he ran Plasmius would hear him even faster. Their cage wasn't even made out of steel. Instead, it appeared to be made of pink coloured light. Danny guessed it was some sort of ghost thing. Great, now that he knew ghosts existed, he wished they didn't. He didn't have any more time to think, because Plasmius was suddenly standing right in front of Danny. It was as if he hadn't even moved at all, as if he had... teleported himself. Another ghostly ability?

"Now, I believe it is time. Go over there and put on the suit."

Danny furrowed his brows. Why would he need to put on a suit? When he didn't make any moves Plasmius became irritated. He produced a kind of gun – Danny had never seen anything like it before – and walked over to the left side of the room, training it on his father and Jazz. The emotionless look on the ghost's blue face indicated Danny that he would not hesitate to pull the trigger.

" _I said_ , put on the suit."

Not wanting to take any chances, Danny hurried to the wall to his right and took the black and white hazmat suit from its place. Once he was dressed, Plasmius instructed him to stand in front of the unfinished ghost portal, which looked more like a useless hole in the wall than anything else. One glance at the weapon still aimed at his family, and Danny complied. He was then told to wait there, while Plasmius took another device and some other material from the table and worked on the box that hang on the wall next to the portal. As far as Danny had seen in his parents' notes it was supposed to control the portal and send information to the main computer.

"Why do you do this?" Danny suddenly demanded. "Why go to all the trouble with me instead of... you know, getting children of your own? Or can ghosts not procreate?"

He was stalling. Maybe if he kept asking questions and got the man talking it would give his mother enough time to come home and... save them. He honestly didn't have much of an idea on how exactly she would be going to do that, but he was desperate and therefore willing to do just about anything to get at least the rest of his family out of this safely.

"I do not have a wife, yet. And I need to present an heir soon or my position and power might be at stake." the ghost explained nonchalantly.

"Okay... But... how are you going to explain my sudden existence?"

It puzzled the boy how this ghost could act so calm and indifferent while pulling off a kidnapping all on his own. Plasmius eyes did not leave his work once, apparently being unconcerned with the possibility of his future son doing anything unexpected.

"I have been hiding you. Let it be explained by the fact of me not having a wife, or protecting you from the media. Either way it will work out in my favour. Our favour."

"What kind of media is there in the ghost zone?"

It was getting easier for Danny to keep talking as his curiosity made his mind shout hundreds of questions about ghosts and their dimension on ist own. Plasmius must have been starting to think he actually wanted to become a ghost and come with him. Speaking of which... how was he going to turn Danny into a ghost anyway? He wasn't sure he wanted to know.

"It's not that different from what humans use, really. Things are just made from different materials and often powered by ghostly magic instead of electricity."

Maybe it was just Danny's imagination, but it seemed as though the other was pleased with his questions, or perhaps the act of asking questions at all. So, Danny continued.

"What is the ghost zone like?"

"Swirling green skies, floating doors and islands. Nothing too interesting. But you will be able to see it all soon."

Much to Danny's dismay, the ghost turned away from the controls, looking quite pleased with himself. Stalling was over.

"Now, Daniel, step into the portal and we shall fix our little problem."

Danny gulped, fear evident on his face. His eyes fell onto the glowing cage holding his father and sister. An idea flashed across his mind and he turned towards the ghost standing – or now floating – a few feet to his left.

"Wait! Before I... do this and go with you, I want to say goodbye to my dad and my sister. Please?"

He felt almost stupid begging for something he shouldn't even need to do, but he knew it was his only choice right now. Plasmius frowned, but after a moment his lips turned into a smirk and he agreed. The ghost waved one hand and the gags and bonds on the two Fentons disappeared, leaving only the cage to show their constriction. Danny instantly ran over and fell to his knees in front of the small cage grabbing one of each of his family members' hands.

"Danny!" Jazz gasped. "Don't do what he says, don't go with him, please!"

Danny gave her a sad, but somewhat reassuring smile.

"Don't worry about me. I'll be alright."

He didn't even believe himself, but he knew it was all he could do. Maybe if he did as Plasmius asked, his family wouldn't be harmed. He definetly did not want to find out what would happen if he did not do as the ghost pleased.

"But-"

"Jazz," Danny interrupted. "I don't have a choice."

Tears were spilling from the fourteen-year-old's eyes as she grasped her little brother's hand desperately. Danny was trying his best to stay strong and not break down in tears himself, but he wasn't far from it. Jack Fenton managed to look both angry and proud at the same time. Angry at the man – ghost – that was about to steal his son, and proud of that son, for being this brave and staying strong even though he was scared, more than a boy his age should be.

"Listen, you two need to promise me that you'll be alright. Promise me, and I'll promise I'll come back, okay? Please, just-"

"That's enough, Daniel. Come here now."

Danny glanced back at the impatient ghost, then looked at his family once more. Both their expressions showed their fear and worry for him. His father reached out and brushed away a single tear that had unknowingly made its way down Danny's cheek. Jack smiled sadly at him.

"I love you, son."

He did not want to leave. He wanted this all to be nothing but a bad dream, so he could just wake up and everything would be back to normal. But that was impossible.

" _Daniel_."

Mustering all his willpower, he let go of their hands and stood up.

"I love you, too." he whispered and walked back to Plasmius.

When he entered the portal he looked directly at Plasmius, whose face did not betray any emotion. A faint sound reached his ears. A door falling shut. Someone calling out their names. Danny closed his eyes, silently praying that his mother would get his dad and Jazz out of here. Then all he felt was pain. Pulsing, searing, burning pain. He did not hear the sreams of his name. He did not hear the pounding on the still locked door. All that was on his mind was pain, pain, _pain_. Then everything went black.

The last thought on his mind was, _they didn't promise_.

* * *

 **I do not own Danny Phantom or any of its characters. Neither do I own Young Justice or any of the DC Universe characters.**

 ** _Here's the first chapter to my new crossover story. I hope you are pleased with my work and are looking forward to the future parts of_** _It Lies In Our Genes_ ** _. Thanks for reading! Don't hesitate to comment and/or fav/follow!_**

 **Alec**

 **[FaHa]**


	3. Chapter Two

**Chapter Two  
**

* * *

He woke up in an unfamiliar and dark bedroom. Confused, he took in his surroundings. He appeared to be in a plain bedroom with a medium sized window, a closet, a desk with a chair and the bed he currently occupied. Curious, he stood up and walked over to the window, pulling away the black curtains. He stopped dead in his tracks as soon as he caught sight of the view outside the glass. _"Swirling green skies, floating doors and islands. Nothing too interesting. But you will be able to see it all soon."_ He felt panic rise up in his chest. He was in the ghost zone. Hurriedly, he backed away from the window as memories began flooding his mind. Memories of talking to Sam and Tucker, getting the message to get home, finding out it hadn't been from Jazz. Memories of his father's sad face. Memories of his sister's terrified expression. And memories of pain. Those were the most vivid pictures in his head. He could not find words to describe the sensation of being in the portal while it exploded with ectoplasmic radiation and electricity. Before he could jump into a full blown panic attack, the door behind him opened. Danny turned around to be met with the being responsible for him even being there. Plasmius smiled a satisfied smile.

"You're awake."

Danny couldn't believe the nerve this guy had, kidnapping him and still smiling like... _this_. Plasmius' smile didn't falter when he didn't answer, instead he just kept talking.

"I didn't know what you would like your room to be like, so I didn't order any changes yet. Also, I left the mirror out for now. I did not want to freak you out."

Anger was welling up in him as the ghost talked about this as though he had actually come with him out of his free will. He wanted to shout at him, fight him, tell him that he won't stay there for long, but his mind had latched onto those last two sentences and was now busy coming to all kinds of horrible conclusions.

"W-" He coughed, not having noticed how dry and sore his throat felt; must have come from all the screaming. "Why would I... freak out?" he asked carefully, dreading the answer.

The specter's creepily proud smile only added to his already skyrocketing uneasiness.

"Come with me and I will show you." Plasmius said, turning around and making his out into a dark hallway.

After a short moment of hesitation Danny followed the ghost all the way into a large kind of lab connected on its left side to a strange trainings room that could be observed from the outside. He had barely stepped foot inside when Plasmius held up a hand to stop him.

"Stay there. And I want to make you never do or touch anything unless I tell you to. Do I make myself clear?"

The ghost's voice was as cold as ice. Danny quickly noticed that the man changed his attitude faster than he could foresee. He had to be even more careful around this guy when he could lash out at any second, even though he might have just spoken like a soft, caring person the moment before.

"I- Yes."

Plasmius did not say anything else as he went off to one side of the lab and came back with a large mirror that he placed in front of Danny with its reflecting side turned away. The blue skinned being did not take his eyes off of Danny while he dramatically turned it, watching the twelve-year-old's reaction to his own reflection. Danny had expected to be met with the usual him: raven black hair, bright blue eyes and light skin. Which is why he was shocked, to say the least, when in his place he saw a white haired, green eyed _ghost_ -boy. He moved slightly and blinked, being confirmed that this person was indeed him. He noticed that his skin was also a bit more tanned and he was glowing. The first thought that came to his mind was, _I'm dead_ , closely followed by, _I'm evil, all ghosts are evil_. Then he quickly halted his train of thought, thinking back on what his parents had taught him about ghosts. Maybe... maybe they did not really know for sure. He... couldn't just be evil, right? He was an exception. Danny was purposely distracting himself from the _I'm dead_ fact, but it did not work as effectively as he'd prefer.

"It did not quite turn out as expected and your core might be more unstable than others, but we got rid of our problem and that's what matters."

Plasmius smiled satisfied at Danny, who was staring into the mirror with wide eyes, as though trying to will it to show him another picture. _No. No no no no! I can't be a ghost_ , he repeated like a mantra in his head, not wanting to believe what was so obviously true. _I don't want to be a ghost. I want to be human again!_ And then it happened. A bright ring of light formed around his waist, splitting in two and travelling over his body - one up and one down - inverting the white and black of the jumpsuit he wore, turning his hair back to black and his glowing eyes back to their usual blue. He yelped in shock and stumbled a few steps back until Vlad put a hand on his shoulder to keep him from moving. Danny whipped his head up to look at the older man as a pair of very similar rings originated around the ghost king, changing his appearance as well. In front of Danny now stood a seemingly normal human with blue eyes and long grey hair which had been pulled back in a ponytail. He also wore an expensive looking business suit and - Danny would've laughed hadn't he had more important things on his mind - more eyeliner than his sister or mother ever would have dared. The now normally skinned _human_ standing there presented another creepy smile.

"We are the same now, Daniel. Nothing will ever be able to separate us again."

The confidence in which the words were spoken send a shiver down Danny's spine.

"I-I don't understand." he said.

Was he a ghost that could look like a human?

"You and I, Daniel, we are special."

"Special?"

"Like me, you are now half-ghost and half-human."

He was now at the point where his mind didn't offer much of an reaction anymore. He just stood there, eyes fixed on the image of the two humans in the mirror in front of him. Two human beings. Two ghostly beings. Human and ghost, both species united in one.

* * *

It had only been one week since the incident. No one really knew what exactly had happened. Most people were saying it had been a technical fault, some believed it had actually had something to do with ghosts, though these theories weren't very popular. There were also some that thought someone had caused the explosion on purpose, even though there had not been a lot of evidence, much less anything that would indicate such a thing. But there was one thing she knew for sure. She couldn't say why, but she just _knew_ that Danny was alive. The police said he had been inside the house at the time, yet there hadn't been a body. She didn't know what had happened, or where he might be, but she would find out. She would see him again and when she did, she was never going to let him go again.

* * *

The training he had to go through was hard. The occasional experiments he had to endure were annoying and uncomfortable. The physical abuse and torture he suffered were painful. But the worst part about being stuck in a castle with Vlad Plasmius was that he had no idea what had happened to his friends and family since he had been taken those three months ago. The first time he had asked the older halfa about his family, he had gotten an earful and the instruction to never ask about them again, because, _"Daniel, you have a new family now."_ The second time he had asked, he had received a beating that had made the message quite clear. He had not dared asking a third time. So, on top of worrying about what mood Plasmius might be in today, and how he could avoid as many bruises and punishments as he could, he also had to worry about his parents, sister and his two best friends. The other ghosts that he sometimes met in the castle that worked for Plasmius either didn't know anything or weren't allowed to tell him. But that didn't mean they knew nothing. He had learned several very useful facts about the build of the castle, its location, security and who he could trust and ask for help. This lead to Danny and the other ghosts that were tired of Plasmius' reign to form a plan of dethroning the evil king. So far though, he had only told one of them about his true heritage, so for now the others had agreed upon making Danny king, or at least prince until he would be of age. It wasn't what he'd had in mind for his future, but until a new heir could be found, he would have to do as placeholder.  
More weeks of silent planning and the training with Vlad went by, when he was put through another row of weird tests. Vlad told him they were necessary due to the lack of stability his ghost core possessed, but half of the things he had to do could never have anything to do with this. But then again, until their plan could be put in action, he did not have a choice but to do exactly as the older halfa asked. Afterwards, he was in his room, going through a book about the system of law in the ghost zone, when Vlad entered the room, sending an accusing glare in Danny's direction.

"Daniel. We need to talk."

He hurriedly stood up and turned around. Had he found out? Were all their plans ruined because someone had spoken? He hoped not; it was all he could do.

"I just went through last test's results."

Danny let out a soundless breath. So it was something else. Maybe something was wrong with his ghost half. Could it be removed if it all became too dangerous?

"And I came upon something that should make you forget your old... _family_ once and for all."

Now Danny was holding his breath again. He did not know what to expect. All he knew was that it could not be good.

"I compared your DNA to Jack Fenton's."

Danny noted how he did not say _your father_ , but _Jack Fenton_. It seemed to be incredibly hard for Vlad to call anyone but himself Danny's family. The ghost king had been too lonely for too long. It must have damaged him beyond repair.

"He is not your real father. I checked Maddie's as well. Both are not your birth parents."

Danny's eyes widened.

"What? But that's impossible! What about Jazz?" he asked incredulously.

"Her DNA shows that she is Maddie and Jack Fenton's daughter by blood."

He had no idea how Vlad had DNA samples of his family members or if he was telling the actual truth, but if he was... that meant he must have been... adopted? Why would his parents never tell him? Had Jazz been informed about this? He was pulled out of his thoughts when Vlad took a few steps to close their distance and put a firm hand on his shoulder. From experience, Danny knew that should he try to escape from the grip or move much at all he would end up with another painful bruise and perhaps even additional punishment.

"Daniel," Vlad loved using these dramatic pauses in his speech. "Have you known about this? Have the Fentons ever informed you that you were adopted?"

Danny inwardly winced at the way he said the name _Fentons_ like Danny wasn't one of them anymore. He slowly shook his head to answer the man's question.

"I hope you are speaking the truth. It would be inappropriate for a future king to lie, now wouldn't it?"

 _You're one to speak_ , Danny thought grimly. Neither of them said anything more after that. Vlad released the younger halfa's shoulder and left Danny alone in his room that wasn't really his. It wasn't home. That night, Danny cried himself to sleep, praying that he was going to get out of there and see his family again. And soon.

* * *

 **I do not own Danny Phantom or any of its characters. Neither do I own Young Justice or any of the DC Universe characters.**

 ** _Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please tell me what you think! (Remember how much time I spend writing and how little time it takes to leave a short review... It really makes my day to read them!)  
_**

 **Alec :)  
**

 **[FaHa]**


	4. Chapter Three

**Chapter Three**

* * *

Danny was running. Hastily he kept pushing through the mass of ghosts around him. Their plan had gone wrong and now everything was in danger of collapsing on them. The resistance was out in the open and Plasmius was not going to stand by and watch any longer as they gained more members. Because of a single traitor in their midst, a hundred lives had been put at stake, Danny's being the first on the list. With the whole of the ghost zone knowing how their heir had been treated, a high amount of ghosts were now starting to see their king as the bad guy. And Plasmius was no dumb bad guy, either. He knew just who had given the last push that had driven the ghostly resistance to its current state of power. So, Danny only had one option.

"Come with me!" a blue skinned, female ghost whisper yelled into his ear as she pulled him into a different hallway by his arm.

Recognizing the specter's voice to be Dora's, a once powerful leader of her own kingdom that had been forced to work under Plasmius, Danny followed her and they made their way through the chaos that roamed the castle. She lead him to a part of the castle Danny had never been before and lastly pushed the young halfa out a metal door where he was immediately grabbed by someone else.

"What's going on?" he asked. "Why am I out here?"

"You are going to hide. Plasmius will be after you now."

Danny tugged his right arm out from the grip and frowned at the male ghost.

"But that wasn't part of the plan." he argued.

"Well, we're changing the plan, kid. It's not my fault the first one didn't work!" came the reply.

Now Danny was starting to become angry. Who did this guy think he was?

"Oh, so now all of this is my fault?"

The far larger ghost took a step forward to tower over Danny, grabbing him by the collar of his suit.

"Listen here, brat-"

"Skulker!" shrieked a high pitched voice from their left.

Skulker let go of Danny and spoke without turning to look at the newcomer.

"What are you doing here?" he growled.

The other ghost floated over to Danny and encased him in a protective hug from the side. Danny leaned into the embrace while he nervously watched the two adults' staring contest.

"I'm here to make sure Danny will be safe." She pulled him even closer. "Which, apparently, was a quite wise choice."

Skulker did not seem the least bit intimidated by his opponent. He stubbornly crossed his metal arms and leaned forward in a daring way.

"Do you doubt my capability of getting the Prince to safety, _Desiree_? "

He spat the name like an insult, making the female specter's aura flare angrily.

"In fact, I do. Which is why I am going to take care of him now. You can leave." Desiree shot back.

Skulker opened his mouth to argue when a ghost that was dressed like a guard opened the door Danny had come from and demanded the metal ghost to follow him inside. Skulker send one last glare at Danny and Desiree and left. After the door closed, the black haired ghost turned to Danny and crouched in front of him, smiling affectionately at him. Even though he had only been in the ghost zone for roughly two months, Danny had really come to like her. In a way, Desiree reminded him of his older sister. Jazz had always had a thing for psychology. She could read people and find out what they are thinking. Jazz had always known him best. Whatever Danny needed, Jazz knew about it before he did himself. Desiree, too, had that ability to tell exactly what Danny needed, what he felt and why. Then she would try her best to give it to him, even though most of it wasn't anything you could just get from any person.

"You are a very brave boy, Danny. You only need to be strong a little longer, alright?"

Danny couldn't do anything but nod. He had the feeling this was goodbye. Maybe forever. Desiree cupped his face with one hand, tears welling up in her ghostly red eyes.

"Okay, you need to listen very closely now." At another nod from Danny, she began explaining the way to a special portal in the ghost zone that would take him back to earth. "From there on you need to find home alone. I'm so sorry, Danny. I wish I could go with you."

"I understand. You're needed here." Danny said, but even as he did he didn't sound fully convinced.

Desiree stood up with a proud smile.

"You will make it through all if this. I know it." Then she hugged him tightly once more before pulling away again. "You need to go. They cannot find you."

"Will I see you again?" Danny asked hopefully.

"One day you will, Danny. Now go."

And he did. Flying away from the castle's island at growing speed, the feeling of being trapped was slowly fading. But so was the feeling of warmth he had gotten from the female wishing ghost. When he took one last look back, he could swear he saw an actual tear slide down the ghost's cheek before she vanished into the dephts of the ghost king's castle.

When the bell rang downstairs, he already knew who it was. The thought saddened. Not long ago there would have been a fifty percent chance as to who was at the door. Grudgingly, he made his way down the stairs to let in his visitor.

"Hey." he said after he had opened the front door.

"Hey Tuck." Sam greeted.

Both of their smiles were fake and they knew it. Danny's death, or disappearance, as Sam claimed, had hit them hard. And most importantly, it had hit their friendship hard. Tucker and Sam had never had much in common, except for being Danny's friends. He had always been the glue between them, and even though they had grown incredibly close themselves over the past years, there was just this kind of empty space between them now. This space that had held Danny. An unspoken promise to work together, to be there for their best friend. And now that they had to be there for each other, now that they needed each other most, this promise had squeezed itself between them like a poisonous parasite that grew stronger the more they tried to fight against it.

"Come in."

Tucker stepped to the side and closed the door as soon as Sam was inside. Without either of them needing to say anything, the two teens headed to Tucker's room. Sam took her usual spot on his bed while Tucker sank into his armchair. He hadn't sat on his desk chair for a whole two months. It had been Danny's spot whenever he was over at Tucker's house.

"Tucker?"

"Yeah?"

"I- nevermind."

Okay, so Tucker might have been a little out of it ever since the incident, but he could still very clearly see when his friend had something to talk about.

"Sam, what is it?"

Sam bit her lip as she seemed to debate whether to tell him or not, but decided to give it a try in the end.

"I had a dream last night. It was about Danny."

Tucker raised his eyebrows and leaned forward in his seat, indicating that she should keep talking.

"He... he was in a lot of pain. At first I could only hear his screams, but then I saw him. He was floating in the air and there was this green light all around him, like hundreds of lightning bolts. And when I tried running towards him I couldn't move." she explained.

Tucker took note of the light tremble in the girls voice, but decided not to comment on it. Instead, he asked what had happened next.

"After a while it stopped and he just fell to the ground. Then there was something black. It covered him like a blanket and he was- he was gone. That's when I woke up."

Tucker was stunned. He was incredibly grateful not to have dreams like this. Sam appeared to be waiting for him to say something, but he had absolutely no idea what he could say. A tense silence fell over them. Tucker imagined it to be Danny's ghost, trying to fill that empty space between them once more, but failing to reach inside them anymore.

"Do you still think he's alive?" Tucker finally spoke, startling his friend.

Sam nodded determinedly.

"I'm sure of it."

Tucker frowned.

"How can you know?" he asked, sounding frustrated.

He saw a brief smile tug at Sam's lips as she answered.

"He wouldn't just leave us like that. Danny's stronger than that. They also never found his body." Then, in a smaller voice, "Besides, I don't think I could take admitting he was actually gone for good."

* * *

 **I do not own Danny Phantom or any of its characters. Neither do I own Young Justice or any of the DC Universe characters.**

 ** _Hi guys! I'm sorry this is so short_** ** _. But it makes most sense this way, so... Anyway, I hope you liked this tiny piece of work and are looking forward to the next chapter! :D I appreciate any favs/follows and reviews. It really means a lot to me! Thanks for reading._**

 **Alec :)  
**

 **[FaHa]**


	5. Chapter Four

**Chapter Four**

* * *

The sky was clear and the streets of Gotham City were full. Masses of people moved along the sidewalks, some with children at their hands, some with full bags of food and other supplies. Some wore casual clothing, some wore sportswear. And some wore suits. One of those suits belonged to none other than famous billionaire Bruce Wayne, who, at this pace, was going to be late for one of his charity events. Bruce was a rather broad man and therefore could not simply slip between the people around him. Although he might be moving faster on foot now than he had been able to with the car, the journey was still agonizingly slow. The few people that recognized him and stared or tried to ask weird questions did not exactly help either. His faithful butler and friend Alfred Pennyworth was a great help in keeping most curious pedestrians off his back, but since Bruce was walking first, he had to fight his way through the crowd on his own. By the time they finally rounded the last corner and their destination came into view, the sidewalk was milling with remarkably less people and Bruce and Alfred could pick up their pace. They were only about two blocks away when something, or rather someone, caught Bruce's eye. Brows furrowed in confusion, he caught up to that person, grabbed their arm and spun them around to look at him.

"What are you doing here?" Bruce asked, tone hard and slightly accusing.

The person, a boy with raven black hair and bright blue eyes, seemed beyond surprised at the man's actions. Eyes wide, he quickly tugged his arm free and put a few feet of distance between them.

"Hey, leave your hands off me!" he protested, shocking Bruce and Alfred, who now stood almost directly next to Bruce.

Both decided not to comment on it for now and deal with the more urgent matter. Just what was he doing here?

"You're supposed to be at the manor, remember?"

The boy was obviously even more perplexed after that.

"Look," he said. "I don't know who you are, and honestly I don't care, okay? So if you would just leave me be-"

"Wait," Bruce interrupted. "Do you see that?" he asked Alfred, gesturing to the boy's face.

If you looked close enough, you could notice the older man's face light up along Bruce's.

"Dick has a birthmark, right there." Bruce pointed towards the left side of the boy's face, close to his ear. "Which means this is not Dick."

This left all three of them confused, for different reasons. The boy's gaze moved between Alfred and Bruce as he seemed to contemplate just running away and staying as far from these weird people as possible. Bruce sighed and gave the boy an apologetic look.

"I am sorry. I confused you with someone else."

"Um, it's alright, I guess." the boy - that was not Dick - replied akwardly.

The two adults shared a glance, Alfred silently telling Bruce it was time they showed up at their destination, Bruce telling Alfred it would have to wait. He held his hand out for the boy to take and politely introduced himself.

"My name is Bruce Wayne."

The boy eyed his hand and, after a moment, hesitantly shook it.

"Danny."

It was so small, Bruce almost did not catch it. For some reason, the billionaire had the feeling this boy was incredibly uncomfortable just talking to him. Sure, they were complete strangers, Danny had said so. But then again, to Bruce it seemed so normal talking to the boy that looked almost exactly like his ward, his son.

"It is a pleasure to meet you, Danny."

"Yeah, you too."

Bruce would have been amused if it had been anyone else giving him that answer, but he was so used to Dick's confidence that it left him completely stunned seeing this Danny kid act the way he was.

"Master Bruce. I do not wish to interrupt, however you are expected to speak at your party. If you prefer not to miss it I suggest we continue on our way, sir." Alfred reminded.

Bruce nodded and gave Danny a last friendly smile.

"Alright, Danny. I have to go."

Danny smiled back weakly.

"Goodbye, Mr Wayne." he said and was gone so fast Bruce did not get the chance to reply.

"Well, that was interesting."

* * *

Dick Grayson was a smart kid. He may have been only twelve years old, but he surely was not an ordinary twelve-year-old. Which meant that there was no way he could ignore the weird looks Bruce was giving him. It had started two days before, after he had come home from a charity event Dick had been banned from due to his week long house arrest. It was not like he liked those kinds of events, quite the contrary. All he ever had to do there was smile and play the nice, obedient ward of Bruce Wayne. But if it meant he knew what was going on with his guardian, he would not complain. Because to be honest, it was staring to really freak him out how every time Dick would enter the room Bruce would look at him really intensely, as though he were looking for something in his face, and then get this odd thoughtful kind of look right afterwards.

At first Dick had shrugged it off and thought nothing much of it, but when Bruce had kept it up for the rest of the day he had decided to ask him about it. All he had gotten out of the man was that he had met someone interesting while he had been out and that Dick should not worry about it. The way he had said it indicated that he had not been speaking of a woman. Naturally, Dick's worry and curiosity had only increased after that. He had asked the one other living occupant of Wayne manor for advice on the matter and gotten virtually the same answer Bruce had already given him. Being that Alfred was probably the most responsible out of the three of them, Dick had deemed it safe to wait out another day to see if it got any better.

When he came down to the dining room the next morning to find Bruce hastily handing Alfred the daily newspaper and telling the butler to "get this somewhere he won't see it", Dick immediately threw the possibility of any sort of improvement on the strange situation straight out of the window. Alfred only nodded and proceeded to leave the room, newspaper in hand, while Bruce turned around, instantly spotting Dick in the doorway. Aaaaand there was the look again.

"Good morning, Dick."

"Morning." Dick replied, eyes narrowed slightly and less cheery, which Bruce either did not notice or simply chose not to comment on.

They ate in silence for a while, the air missing the usual rustling of a newspaper in Bruce's hands. Alfred was still nowhere to be seen. Bruce was staring down at the table, obviously in deep thought. Dick was staring at Bruce, trying to figure out the mystery that was his guardian. When the billionaire-by-day-vigilante-by-night actually missed his mouth with the fork he was handling, Dick had enough. Sighing, he went to stand next to Bruce, taking the man's plate and shoving it slowly out of reach. It concerned the twelve-year-old even more when it took Bruce a few seconds to react. This had to be serious. When he finally looked at him, Dick spoke.

"Alright, Bruce. We need to talk."

"About what?"

"About what is going on." Dick felt like they were playing with reversed roles. "The person you met a few days ago, who was that?"

"No one important."

Bruce tried to wave him off, looking absolutely nonchalant. Dick would have totally bought it if he did not know how well his guardian could act and to not right out take him for real.

"Don't lie to me. I want to know why you are so troubled."

"I'm not troubled.", Bruce denied.

"Yes you are. You're not acting like yourself. And you know exactly just how dangerous that can be in our field of work. Please, just tell me what's going on."

"I'm alright. There's nothing you need to worry about," was all Bruce said before he left the room and made his way towards his study.

* * *

The only other times Alfred had seen Bruce like this had been shortly before he had decided to dress up like a bat and fight bad guys and right after the death of Mary and John Grayson when he had decided to take in their nine-year-old son. Considering those times and what he had read in the newspaper this morning, he thought he had an idea about what the man was planning. Alfred also knew it was going to be hard to convince Bruce to let go of his idea. As he wandered down the manor's upper hallway, he took notice of one particular open door, the door to Bruce's study. Quietly, Alfred entered the room to a pacing, deep in thought Bruce. He patiently waited for the other to notice him before he spoke.

"I believe I have seen all of this before, sir."

Bruce stopped behind his desk, sank heavily into his chair and tiredly ran a hand over his face. Coffee could only do so much to keep someone awake and alert. The man's eyes rested on the newspaper that was lying on the mahogany surface of the desk. It was the very same one Alfred had placed there that morning. The page it was opened to held two pictures. One showed a mostly destroyed building and a couple of people around it such as the police and men in white uniforms that Alfred did not recognize. The other image was obviously supposed to be a family picture. It presented two adults, one man and a woman, a girl, probably around fourteen, and a boy. A very familiar looking boy.

" _Family dies tragic death in their own home, twelve-year-old son possibly still alive_ " Bruce read aloud.

"Are you sure it was indeed him, sir?" Alfred asked.

"This article says the boy's name is Daniel Fenton; Danny would be a very possible nickname. And except for the fact that his hair in this picture is slightly shorter, he looks exactly the same."

"And how would the boy have ended up in Gotham City? As I recall he lived in a small town in Illinois. Someone surely would have noticed." Alfred argued, making Bruce sigh in frustration.

"I don't know. But now everytime I think about our encounter I see his nervousness in a completely different light. What if... what if the explosion was not an accident? And now Daniel is running from whoever targeted him and his family."

"Master Bruce, do you not think that you might be jumping to conclusions?"

Bruce tried giving the older man a glare, only to fail miserably. He coul not glare at Alfred.

"Maybe you're right. But there is also the chance that I'm not. I have to do some research. Excuse me."

With a determined look, Bruce left Alfred on his own. The butler sighed quietly as he walked over to the desk and picked up the newspaper. If this boy was indeed still alive, he must be broken hearted. Just like Dick had been, after witnessing his own parents' murder. It almost seemed like destiny's cruel idea of a joke that the two boys shared something other than age and looks. And Alfred had the feeling that destiny still had a lot more to dump on them.

* * *

 **I do not own Danny Phantom or any of its characters. Neither do I own Young Justice or any of the DC Universe characters.**

 ** _Hey there! I hope you all liked this chapter. :) I feel it's a little rushed, but I'm mostly satisfied with how it turned out. I would highly appreciate any feedback (and favs/follows...) as always! Thanks for reading._**

 **Alec :)  
**

 **[FaHa]**


	6. Chapter Five

**Chapter Five**

* * *

Being the ward of a billionaire was useful, being the protégé of the Batman even more so. One of the best things that had come with being Robin? Meeting Kid Flash. Dick Grayson and Wally West had quickly bonded and become best friends. Wally was his only real friend, too. The only one who he could talk to about everything that came with being a child hero. If there was anyone Dick could tell about his problem concerning Bruce, it was him. So, after being walked out on in response to voicing his concern for the man, he had immediately called the older boy, who had sped over to Wayne manor almost instantly. Now the two of them were sitting in Dick's room, the TV on without anyone paying any real attention to it.

"I just don't get it. He's never like this. It's like he's constantly in his own mind."

"Dude. He's Batman. He has to have a good reason." Wally said.

Dick gave the fourteen-year-old a look.

"Well yeah. But I want to know that reason." he argued.

"Maybe," Wally seemed hesitant to voice his opinion. "Maybe you really are worrying too much." Already seeing an argument coming, he quickly continued. "I mean, sure, he's acting a bit off and it's your job to worry about that, but if he says it's not important then maybe is not important."

Dick sighed, running a hand through his dark hair.

"I know that." He pulled his legs towards his torso, keeping them there with his arms. "But there's something that's telling me I shouldn't let this go, that it _is_ important somehow. I can't describe it."

"Try."

Dick knew Wally believed him. He would not lie to his best friend, not about something as serious as this. Besides, Wally knew him. When Dick said he had a feeling it was best to follow it. The Boy Wonder had a unique instinct that he knew to trust in case of doubt. He rested his chin on top of his knees and stared at the TV while he tried to find the right words.

"I don't know. Sometimes I have feelings or even thoughts that don't make sense, like they were someone else's, but not."

He groaned and buried his faced in his arms.

"Ugh, I sound so stupid." he grumbled.

Suddenly he felt an arm wrap around him and the warm presence of his friend next to him. He unconsciously leaned into the hug, just happy to have Wally there with him.

"I don't think it sounds stupid" he said and to Dick he could not have said anything better. "I'm sure there's an explanation for all of it."

Slowly, Dick lifted his head to glance at the redhead, expression one of uncertainty.

"But what if I don't find out fast enough?" he asked.

Wally smiled. Dick loved it when he smiled.

"It's _we_. And we _will_ find out. Don't worry."

Dick felt his confidence come back as he involuntarily believed what Wally told him. He did not know any other person to have ever had this effect on him. Besides his mother, perhaps.

"Yeah, you're right." he agreed, a small smile now on his lips as well. "We'll show Batman who's the world's greatest..." Wally frowned as Dick slowly trailed off, eyes glued to the screen in front of them. "...detectives."

"Dick?" Wally seemed confused until he looked at the TV as well. "Oh."

On screen, a blonde woman was talking.

 _"...has not yet been found. The police suspects a technical defect to have caused the explosion that destroyed Fenton Works. The youngest family member, Daniel Fenton, is still missing, although it is speculated that he, too, died in this horrible accident. Special scientists have..."_

Next to her was the picture of a young boy. A boy that looked _just like Dick_.

"Wally, I think I have an idea what's up with Bruce."

* * *

Sighing, she turned off the TV, leaning back into the soft cushions of their living room couch. No matter how hard she tried not to think about it - not to think about _him -_ she could not get it out of her mind. Everywhere she went, people were talking about it. In a small place like Amity Park news travelled fast, but since nothing interesting happened on a regular schedule, a story like this would be the subject of every second conversation for a long time. Even now, more than two months later, one could hear the name _Fenton_ every corner they turned. But the one place where it was worse than anywhere else was Casper Middle, Amity Park's middle school. There was not a single student at the school who had not known Danny Fenton.

And there was not a single student who had not known that Danny Fenton had had exactly two best friends. Tucker Foley had never been anything more than the techno geek that was friends with the ghost kid, just like Sam Manson had never been anything more than the goth girl that was friends with the ghost kid. Now all that they remained were the techno geek and the goth girl. The problem was not that people were constantly rubbing it in their faces, those people had nothing to do with it. The problem was that they were _right_. That is not supposed to mean that Sam thought of herself as _just a goth girl_ , it is supposed to mean that all they had ever had was Danny. And now that he was not there, Sam was beginning to realize just how much she needed him, how much _they_ needed him.

Danny had been both Sam and Tucker's mental support system. If they ever had a problem, anything that was bothering them, let it be a bad dream or a fight with another family member, Danny had been the one to comfort them, give his own unique kind of advice, or even just listen. How were Sam and Tucker supposed to deal with a situation worse than anything Danny had ever helped them with, without Danny?

She pushed herself off the couch and made her way to the front door. First, she would have to visit Tucker's house, then they would start their own research.

Sam could only see one way out of the bubble of eternal misery that was surrounding them. They had to get their best friend back. And they were going to get him back. Because Sam Manson and Tucker Foley were the techno geek and the goth girl that were friends with the ghost kid, Danny Fenton.

* * *

Why could nothing go after plan? First with the resistance, then with staying hidden until he found a way home. Instead, he had ended up getting caught trying to get some food due to his invisibility and intangibility failing him at the worst moment possible. Just great. Now he was inside one seriously crappy police station, with every second person there giving him a weird look, while he was being lead to a chair in front of one of the desks. A man - somewhere between fifty and sixty, Danny guessed - took the seat behind the desk. He looked tired, like he had worked all night and day without gaining satisfying results. The thought made Danny nervous. Any more stress might send the man's patience tumbling over the edge.

"Alright, young man, let's talk. I am Comissioner Gordon. What's your name?"

Despite the friendly tone of his voice, Danny felt oddly intimidated. It was almost as though he could feel the man's experience and authority. Danny bit his lip, not answering.

"You don't want to tell me yourself? Well then, how about I try. Are you Daniel James Fenton?"

Again, Danny said nothing, but when he tensed at the name he probably gave himself away regardless.

"Very well. Let's talk about what you did at the market instead, hm? Tell me exactly what happened."

The Comissioner was still getting no verbal response out of the twelve-year-old.

"Okay. Daniel - that is your name, am I right? - it would be a lot easier for both of us if you would speak to me. Just answer a few questions and you can go."

Danny stared wordlessly at the man, shaking his head almost unnoticeably, making Gordon frown.

"No? Why not?"

Danny only repeated the action.

"There's nothing to be afraid of. We're the good guys, remember?" Gordon tried, growing more frustrated by the second.

As much as he liked children, working with the police in Gotham City the children he met were often harder to work with than the adults. Most of them were problem kids, usually having been affected by their parents, if they even had any. Others had seen things, been through hard times. It surely made the job seem a lot more difficult. Especially when the child often was the most important witness.

"Daniel-"

"It's Danny." he corrected, a bit more harsh than intended.

Gordon's frustrated expression softened a little and he sighed.

"Alright, Danny. We're going to do it like this: we let the incident from earlier go, if you answer a few other questions, okay?" He did not wait long for an answer that was not going to come anyway. "Let's try again. Are you Daniel James Fenton?"

This time, Danny nodden hesitantly, much to Gordon's relief. He figured it was his best shot at the moment. The Comissioner was right, the police were the good guys. The only one he should fear was Vlad.

"Do you know what happened at your home two months ago?" Gordon questioned carefully.

Danny frowned. Would anyone believe him if he told them he had been kidnapped by a ghost? He doubted it. He was about to clamp his mouth shut and never talk to this guy again when he realized that he still had no clue about what had happened to his family. He was scared to find out, but he had to.

"My family," he said in a small voice. "Are they okay?"

The heartbroken expression of the man in front of him told him all that he needed to know.

* * *

It was not long until the Dark Knight caught wind of the police's findings. He had been going through not only the GCPD's files, but through any other places that could potentially hold any useful hints, searching for further information on the Fenton case. And he did find enough to partially confirm his suspicions. The chance that the explosion had occured entirely on accident was extremely small. How the police had managed to miss it was a mystery to him.

Another point was why Daniel Fenton had run away from his home after the incident. Either he had had something to do with it - which Batman honestly doubted - or he had been trying to hide from whoever had caused the explosion. Which meant he would know who the person - or persons - was, or at least have some kind of information on them. Talking to the boy would definitely prove useful. That is if he actually told him all he new. From what Batman had found out by reading the police reports of the Commissioner's conversation with Daniel he had not been very talkative. The _interrogation_ had been broken off after it had become clear that the twelve-year-old had known nothing of his family's deaths which resulted in him breaking down crying in the middle of the police station.

For the time being, the boy had been placed in the Gotham City Orphanage until a place for the boy to stay would be worked out. Batman knew the people that worked at the orphanage and he honestly wished he didn't. The thought of an emotionally unstable child being stuck in such a place angered the man. It reminded him too much of one certain boy who had been placed in a juvenile detention center at age nine after having just witnessed the murder of his own parents. Once again that idea presented itself at the forefront of his mind. Back then he had made the decision to take Dick in, hoping to make it easier for both of them. Why not take in Danny as well? Although it might just be a little akward, being that the two could practically be twins... Actually... what were the odds of the two of them being related? The possibility would not leave him alone. A little more research could not hurt, right? Right.

* * *

 **I do not own Danny Phantom or any of its characters. Neither do I own Young Justice or any of the DC Universe characters.**

 ** _Heh. I made a teeny tiny mistake there... and accidentally published chapter six instead of chapter five. Sorry! Hope everything makes a bit more sense now.  
_**

 **Alec :D  
**

 **[FaHa]**


	7. Chapter Six

_**(A/N: Go read chapter five, please. It's the right one now!)**_

* * *

 **Chapter Six**

* * *

"Very well. If you believe this to be best for him..."

"I do. This is not the first time I take in a child that has recently been orphaned, Gordon."

Jim Gordon sent a worried glance behind him where his chair was currently occupied by a twelve year old boy with a tear stained face. He was wrapped up in a blanket and looked rather lost in between all the strangers around him. Gordon sighed and nodded towards Bruce.

"Alright. We're done with the boy, you can take him with you now." Bruce was about to walk past him to talk to the boy when Gordon stopped him by putting a hand on his shoulder. "Bruce," Gordon fixed him with a serious look. "Be careful. Not everyone mourns the same way. Don't think he'll be just like Richard."

"Thank you, Gordon," Bruce replied and finally made his way to the Commissioner's chair, kneeling down in front of it to appear less intimidating. Trying to look friendly, he put on a careful smile. "Danny? I'm Bruce Wayne. We met a few days ago, do you remember me?"

Danny's eyes searched his face and after a moment he seemed to recognize the man in front of him. Slowly, he nodded.

"Danny, I need to ask you something, okay?" Danny nodded again and Bruce continues speaking in a soft tone. "You told the police that you were adopted, is that right?" As predicted, Bruce received another nod. "Do you know who your birth parents were?" Danny did not seem to have noticed the past tense he had used, or maybe he simply chose to ignore it. Either way, he shook his head this time. "Alright, Danny, I just spoke to Commissioner Gordon and told him that I found out the names of your birth parents. Do you want to know them?"

This time the reaction was more obvious than a simple nod or shake of the head. Danny's eyes widened slightly and his previously dull and purely sad eyes now held a small spark of curiosity, hope and... fear? His answer came as barely more than a whisper.

"Yes, please."

"Their names were Mary and John Grayson. They were famous trapeze artists in a traveling circus. Only a little over a year after you were born, someone took you from them."

Despite just having been told that he had been kidnapped as a small child, relief showed on the twelve-year-old's face. His parents had not given him away willingly. He had not been unwanted. Taking this as a positive sign, Bruce continued.

"Not long after that you were adopted by the Fentons, unknowingly to them that you had been taken against your biological parents' will. Unfortunately, Mary and John Grayson became the victims of a crime and died three years ago."

Danny seemed to be a little sad, but he had never met his birth parents, making it understandable for him not to feel too bad about their demise.

"But there's another thing. It is one of the reasons I would like to ask you if would like to come live with me from now on."

Danny raised his eyebrows in surprise and curiosity.

"The Graysons left behind another child, Danny. A boy named Richard. He is your twin brother."

Bruce was not sure if the expression on Danny's face was just one of shock or if he was actually happy to hear that he had a brother.

"Now the reason I would like to take you in is that I did the same with Richard after your parents passed away. I think it would only be fair if the two of you got to live together as brothers, don't you think? What do you say?"

Now Danny stared at him as though he had just asked him to come live in a huge mansion with a billionaire, which – unbeknownst to him – was exactly what he had been asked. Hesitantly, Danny nodded and Bruce could swear he even saw the hint of a smile play at the corner of the boy's lips.

"I would like that."

It had taken some time, work and a good number of favors to get everything solved in basically one night, but in the end it had paid off. The revelation that Danny and Dick were really twins had shocked both of them, but if the excitement and utter happiness his ward had shown could be any indication Bruce guessed it was all for the better. Bruce had made a couple of deals to assure a few weeks of privacy so Danny would have the time to adjust without a mob of nosy reporters following his every move. As soon as they had been out in the car, alone and away from all the people inside the police station, Danny had awkwardly asked for his friends. Bruce had immediately promised that he would be able to call them as soon as they reached the manor. This seemed to satisfy the twelve-year-old for the time being and they rode the rest of the way in silence. Bruce decided to leave the boy to his thoughts while tending to his own.

He tried to imagine what it would be like for Danny and Dick to meet for practically the first time and what it would be like to have another person roaming the halls of Wayne manor. It had taken quite some convincing to get Dick to wait at the manor instead of coming with him to pick up his brother. Bruce also wondered if they should tell Danny about their nightly activities. He supposed it would be best to wait some time to see how well their new family member adjusted. And who knew, if he was like his brother he might just find his way into the batcave all on his own.

The drive to Wayne manor did not take very long and Bruce could soon watch the boy on the passenger seat stare out of the window with wide eyes. Sure, everyone has probably had the chance to see a house this big, but knowing they were going to live in one? Less likely.

"It's bigger than Sam's house," Danny breathed out and Bruce would not have heard it had he not been paying close attention to him.

Bruce was starting to worry. Every time he had heard Danny speak it had been so small. He hoped it was just the circumstances of the past events and Danny would soon be himself again. Although maybe this really was him. Despite this, Bruce found himself smiling openly as he steered the car into the long driveway. He was relieved to see that Danny actually looked a little excited to enter the house and Bruce found himself honestly admiring the boy's ability to still find pleasure in the little positive things instead of letting himself be forever weighed down by the death of his adoptive family. However, Danny's excitement did not stop him from waiting patiently in his seat until Bruce made the first move to exit the vehicle. Only then did he open the passenger door, waiting on his side for Bruce to make his way around the car. From there on the older of the two took the lead in going up the rest of the way to the front entrance which opened without either of them knocking. Danny unconsciously took a small step backwards as one of the heavy doors swung open - easily and without a sound - to reveal a certain British butler. Noticing the uneasy tense in Danny's posture, Bruce did not wait long to introduce the two strangers.

"Danny, this is Alfred Pennyworth, he is a good friend. Alfred, this is Danny."

"Nice to meet you, sir," Danny mumbled awkwardly taking the offered hand of the man in front of him and shaking it.

Alfred did not quite smile, but it was close to it anyway.

"The pleasure is mine, Master Daniel."

Danny flinched slightly at the name. Bruce guessed he was used to being called Danny.

"Um, if you don't mind, I prefer Danny," he said.

Alfred nodded in understanding.

"As you wish, Master Danny. You may also call me Alfred."

Danny, too, nodded, then tried glancing past the butler after hearing another voice ringing out from inside the manor. The voice belonged to Dick who had obviously waited long enough to meet his last living member of his blood family. As he came down the stairs and approached the front door, Alfred took a step to the side and Bruce carefully ushered his new ward through the doorway. Dick had crossed the center of the large hall by now. The moment both boys were close enough to properly see each other, they froze. For what felt like eternity, all they did was stare at each other, not saying a word. Alfred and Bruce shared a worried glance as they waited for something to happen. After a while though Alfred decided to simply leave them be and vanished soundlessly into the manor's kitchen. Choosing to follow his lead, Bruce told the two boys that he would leave them alone for some time and to call him or Alfred if they needed anything. Bruce knew Dick could show Danny to his room, so he went to take care of a few things in his study.

Dick had not told Wally that Danny was coming yet. For some reason he felt like he should do this on his own first. Now he wished Wally was there with him. He could not remember ever being this nervous before. He tried to reassure himself by repeating in his head that this was his brother and he should not have anything to worry about over and over in his head, but did it work? Yeah, no. So, he just kind of stood there, hoping that Danny would make the first move. He mentally hit himself. He was Robin for goodness sake! He should not have thoughts like that. Alright, okay, good. He could do this. _Just say hi_ , he told himself, _I can do that, yep_. He opened his mouth, struggling to get a few words out. _I can't do it_. Why was this so hard?! It was just like talking to a mirror! ...Oh. Okay so maybe that was what made it so weird. But still, he had to _say something_.

"Um, hi."

 _Well, it was something_ , he thought grimly.

Danny blinked, silent, and Dick feared he was not going to answer. He had made the first move, Danny better help him out now and at least respond. Verbally.

"...Hi."

 _Well, that was something, too._

"Um, I'm Richard, but everyone calls me Dick."

Dick hesitantly crossed the awkward distance between them and held out his hand. Danny looked at, brows furrowed, as though trying to figure out what he was supposed to do with it. But then Dick saw the corner of his lips twitch upwards into an almost smile as Danny took his hand.

"Daniel, but everyone calls me Danny."

Now Dick felt the urge to smile, too. They had just found their first similarity. After the hand shake, Dick let his hand hang unceremoniously by his side while Danny used his to scratch at the back of his neck. _Must be a nervous habit_ , Dick noted. He immediately thought back to all the tricks Bruce had taught him how to stop with those kinds of things. It would be inconvenient to have his secret identity compromised by a telltale nervous habit. Maybe he could help Danny let go of his, too. But first things first.

"I can show you where your room is so you can settle in a little. I put some of my clothes on your bed so you can change, if you'd like. They... uh, they should fit you well enough."

The last statement seemed a little obvious, but he felt the need to say it anyway. Danny nodded somewhat shyly and followed Dick as he lead the way upstairs. They stopped in front of a door and Dick pushed down the handle, opening it.

"This is it. Bruce said you can change it whatever way you want to later. My room's just next door. So, if you want to you can come over once you're ready and we can... talk some more?"

Danny smiled a little.

"Sounds good to me."

He peeked into his new room, seemingly searching for something. After a moment he appeared satisfied and with a grateful nod towards Dick, entered the bedroom. Dick sighed, heading to the room next door, trying to mentally prepare himself for the oncoming conversation of awkwardness and more awkwardness.

* * *

 **I do not own Danny Phantom or any of its characters. Neither do I own Young Justice or any of the DC Universe characters.**

 _ **I'm really sorry guys! In case you haven't seen the change, I accidentally confused this chapter with chapter five. So, I fixed it and now chapter five is the actual chapter five and this is chapter six. If you haven't read the new and correct chapter five yet, go do it now! Again, I'm really sorry!  
**_

 **Alec  
**

 **[FaHa]**


	8. Chapter Seven

**Chapter Seven**

* * *

As soon as the door fell shut behind him Danny let out a breath he had not noticed he had been holding. He allowed himself a moment to gather his thoughts, leaning against the dark wood. Four words were repeated in his head, over and over, like a mantra that was supposed to keep away the images he involuntarily made up about their death. Whenever they would try to invade his thoughts – which was quite often – he would speak those words in his mind. _I am not alone_. It was all he could do to keep himself somewhat together. He was just a twelve-year-old that had been orphaned. It was no surprise he felt as though he had been left alone on this earth, er, in this world. Worlds? Dimensions? Nevermind.

After briefly closing his eyes and taking another deep breath he pushed himself away from the door and ventured deeper in the gigantic bedroom, his bedroom. Stopping in front the window he could not help but think back when he first woke up in Vlad's castle, finding out he was on the ghost zone and first learning about his powers. It felt like an eternity since then - an eternity he had lived most of in that same place – but the memories seemed so clear to him right then that it was as though it had been yesterday. But now was different from then. This time he was with people that were actually willing to do something in order to be able to call themselves his "family".

Danny found himself honestly enjoying the view of the beautiful garden surrounding the manor and the tall buildings of Gotham City rising up in the distance. He could definitely get used to that. Turning away from the window, Danny walked over to the bed that was positioned at the middle of the left wall. It was big enough for at least three of him to sleep in comfortably with still more than enough space to move. Danny eyed the clothes that had been placed in top of it. They were not exactly what he would usually wear but he decided they were not bad either. Taking the boundle with him, he made his way to the bathroom. Once inside, he quickly stripped away his old clothes, only now fully realizing just how messy they really were. _Well,_ he thought, _sleeping next to an old dumpster in some random alley does that_. As he was about to just put on the ones Dick had lent him, his gaze fell onto the shower cabin to his right. Taking a quick shower would not hurt, right? And so he stepped inside, happy to be able to clean himself. When he was done he felt like he had not only washed away the grime and dirt on his body, but also part of what had happened. It felt good to say the last. He quickly put on the pair of casual jeans and the shirt that were not his, noticing that they did in fact fit him rather well. Then, remembering the last time he had actually used a toothbrush had been a couple of days back, he grabbed the one from the sink and did that too. Then, finally satisfied, he left the bathroom, placing his old clothes at the foot of his bed and walking over to the phone that stood on a commode. He hesitated only for a short second before grabbing it and dialing the number of Tucker Foley. It took a moment for the other to pick up, a moment that seemed agonizingly long to Danny. Then, finally, a voice came from the speaker.

 _"Hello?"_

The voice sounded vary, unsure who had called him. It was only now occurring to Danny that Tucker did not know the number of Wayne manor, but the thought only grazed his mind as he was far too happy to hear his best friends voice again.

"Tuck, it's me, Danny."

He could make out a weird choking noise from Tucker, who apparently had not been expecting Danny to have been the one who called him. Tucker coughed once, then answered, his tone showing happiness and disbelief.

 _"D-Danny? It's really you?"_

Danny chuckled lightly, tears of joy slowly gathering in his blue eyes.

"The one and only."

Now Tucker laughed, too. It was a laugh that sounded relieved and somehow hysterical to Danny.

 _"Oh my god. I thought I'd never see you again! I mean, uh, hear your voice again..."_

This made Danny laugh another time. Then he started explaining what had happened, leaving out the ghostly parts and simply telling Tucker that he had been kidnapped by some guy he did not know, who was the same person that had caused the explosion at Fenton Works. Then he asked about Sam and how Tucker and her had been doing without him. Tucker sighed unhappily.

 _"Well I guess you can imagine. Thinking your best friend died is not exactly the best thing to bond over. I mean, sure, Sam and I are great friends, but the reason we became friends in the first place are you, man. And then Sam started having dreams about you and she began to claim you were still alive, which I now know is true, but anyways-"_

"Actually, Tuck, I think I should really call Sam as well."

There was a pause on Tucker's side of the line.

 _"Yeah, you're right. You should."_

"I'll call you later, or tomorrow maybe, okay?" Danny suggested

 _"You better do. We need to make out a time for me to visit. Or you could come... to Amity..."_

"Uh, yeah. We will. I'll call Sam now. Bye, Tuck."

 _"Bye Danny. And don't you dare disappear on me until tomorrow!"_

Danny sighed heavily as he hung up. It had been hard telling Tucker everything, or most of it, anyway. He had even left out a few details as to not make it worse, like the fact that he was now living with Bruce Wayne of all people. Tucker would have probably wanted to come over at that instant had he found out about that tiny detail. Danny dialed Sam's number before he could change his mind about it. Besides, she had the right to know he was okay. Judging from what Tucker had let slip, she had not taken it too well hearing Danny was being presumed dead. The talk went pretty similar to the one he had had with Tucker, just with a bit more _I knew you were alive_ and _What took you so long?_ He felt a little bit better afterwards, but with the realization that he still had a most likely incredibly awkward conversation with his brother - it still felt weird knowing he had one - the nervousness came back almost full force. Taking a few deep breaths, he tried to brace himself as he made his way out into the hallway, stopping in front of the door that lead to Dick's room. He lifted one hand to knock, and after a second of hesitation, bumped his knuckles on the wood. Danny was startled when the door opened. I didn't even hear him walking to the door, he thought.

"Come in," Dick simply said, his smile appearing slightly strained.

Danny nodded and followed him into the room.

* * *

The shouting got louder and louder. The guards standing at the large double doors were starting to exchange concerned looks. The atmosphere was tense as everyone waited for something to happen. Straining his ears, Skulker managed to make out some of what was being said.

"Please, my king-"

The terrified voice was interrupted with harsh coldness.

"You told me you had a lead! You told me you knew where he was!"

"We did, but-"

"You had one job. Apparently, you and your men are not fit to work for your king."

"No, your highness, we-"

"You are dismissed. However, your actions shall have consequences."

Several loud shouts of protest reached through the doors until a couple of guards escorted the specter into the hallway and away from the throne room. Skulker entered shortly after to a furiously pacing Plasmius. He did not bother with the formalities as he approached the ghost king.

"Vlad."

Said person immediately stopped in their tracks and turned around. The angry expression on his face faded to an exhausted one.

"Skulker. Please tell me you bring good news!"

Skulker sighed and shook his head.

"Nothing on the boy, I am afraid."

The hopeful glint in Plasmius' eyes disappeared instantly. Seeing this, Skulker quickly continued.

"But during our search we came across something interesting."

The other ghost visibly perked up at this, so Skulker went on.

"Our ecto-radiation sensors picked up a foreign energy signature. The power levels were above average."

Plasmius seemed to think for a moment, processing the new information.

"What are you thinking, Vlad?" Skulker wondered aloud, half afraid of what the answer was going to be.

"I am thinking," Vlad said, his lips slowly twisting into a smirk. "That someone shall be paid a little visit. And if it turns out they tried to hide what is mine, well, they're going to wish they hadn't."

* * *

To make things easier, they had started off with a simple game of questions. They asked each other thing like _What's your favourite colour?_ or _What are your hobbies?_ until they ran out of easy questions. That's when their one sentence answers turned to long winded explanations and descriptions. After a while, the awkward tension between them lifted and they talked more freely. The more they learned about each other, the more they could believe they were actually brothers.

 _"So... you got a best friend?" came Dick's next question._

 _"Two, actually. Their names are Sam and Tucker. Tuck and I know each other since we were four. Then I met Sam in fourth grade when she transferred to our school," Danny replied. "What about you?"_

 _"His name is Wally. He's two years older than me, but he's really cool. And then there's Barbara. She's a pretty close friend, too."_

 _"You need to introduce us sometime."_

 _"Definitely. And we should invite your friends, as well."_

The thought of introducing Dick to Sam and Tucker made Danny feel much better about his current situation. It reminded him that he still had that part of his old life and that he could combine it with his new one. The two had spent quite some time talking about their friends and different funny or interesting stories they had lived with them. Danny had told Dick how Sam had started with being a goth as an act of rebellion towards her parents half a year ago and about Tucker's odd obsession with technology and maths.

 _"He gives them each names and talks to them as if they were actual living beings. It's kinda weird, but funny, too."_

 _Dick laughed._

 _"You know, I'm really into technology and maths, too. I even won a couple of mathematics competitions in school and stuff."_

 _Danny openly gaped at him._

 _"You're serious?"_

 _"Yeah."_

Dick had appeared a little embarrassed, probably due to Danny's incredulous expression, but that had been soon forgotten when Danny had told him how awesome that sounded. He had been even more astounded once Dick had revealed that he was a hacker, too, and a pretty good one at that. After that they had come to talk about their preferred future careers.

 _"I've always wanted to become an astronaut when I'm older," Danny said with an almost dreamy expression on his face. "Dad and I always used to climb up onto our roof at night to watch the stars and he would point out some constellations he knew. After a while I became so interested that it was soon me who would know all the names and information about them. Dad would then say that I was born to reach the stars..."_

Danny knew that had he not stopped there he would have easily broken down in tears right there. The knowledge that he would never be able to gaze stars with his dad again hurt way too much.

 _"What do you have in mind?" he asked, hoping to change the subject away from his family._

 _Dick frowned a little, seeming to ponder the question for a moment before he answered._

 _"I'm not sure yet. Well, a few years I ago I still thought I was going to stay with the circus and become a trapeze artist, like mom and dad. But now... I've been thinking of becoming a police officer."_

So much about changing the subject to something other than family. They had only briefly grazed the subject of Dick's parents – Danny's birthparents – before. As curious as Danny was about them, he just could not quite bring himself to talk about them. To him they were complete strangers. But if he got closer to Dick they would get closer to him, as well. He just needed some time.

 _"A police officer? Why?"_

 _"The idea of saving lives just seems really awesome to me, I guess," Dick explained with a half grin that made Danny wonder if he had said some kind of inside joke he did not know about._

 _"When I look at it like that, it does sound pretty awesome."_

The rest of the evening had went on like this and both boys had gotten to know each other better. One time Alfred had checked in on them and brought them something to eat, but other then that they had spent the whole time with just each other. When Bruce finally came in to wish them both good night, he was met with a sight that warmed his heart to the core. Dick and Danny were both sprawled across Dick's bed, sleeping soundly.

* * *

 **I do not own Danny Phantom or any of its characters. Neither do I own Young Justice or any of the DC Universe characters.**

 _ **Just like with my other story, Knowing Family, I have decided to publish the next chapters until this is up-to-date with my other page :) I do expect a review or maybe a fav/follow in response to these three chapters at once :) Sound good?**_

 ** _Thanks for reading!_**

 **Alec :)**

 **[FaHa]**


	9. Chapter Eight

**Chapter Eight**

* * *

As soon as Bruce had come home from work, Danny saw him vanish into his study. He had only been living in the manor for little over a week now and while the other three members of the household had been nothing but kind and patient with him, he had yet to learn their other sides. So, with the fear of possibly annoying Bruce and getting to know him in a way he probably did not want to know, Danny approached The Study. Hesitantly, he lifted his hand to knock. But before he could even touch the wood, Bruce called out from inside.

"You can come in Danny."

Startled and confused, Danny opened the door and peeked his head in to see Bruce smiling at him. How the man had known he was there was a complete mistery to him. He awkwardly shuffled around the open door and closed it behind him.

"I'm sorry, I didn't want to interrupt you or anything-"

"It's alright. You didn't interrupt me. Did you need anything from me?"

Danny tried not to look shocked at Bruce's calm reaction. Danny knew from Dick that Bruce had a lot of work and that he did not like to be interrupted. He was not going to look a gift horse in the mouth. Trying to remember the words he had prepared before, Danny spoke.

"Um, I kinda wanted to ask you something."

Bruce nodded to show him he should continue.

"I would really like to go to school again."

Bruce's eyebrows shot up in surprise and he looked like he wanted to say something, so Danny quickly went on.

"You probably don't think this is a good idea and that I shouldn't go yet, but I've already missed a lot and if I wait much longer I might not be able to keep up anymore. Plus, I don't know what I'm supposed to do with my time. So, please, Bruce?"

For a moment, there was no response at all and Danny was almost sure he was going to say no.

"You really want to?"

Danny's face lit up instantly and he nodded eagerly. Bruce chuckled lightly at his enthuisasm.

"If you are sure you can handle it," he half asked.

"I can," Danny assured.

"Then I don't see why not." Ignoring Danny's happy shout of yes, he kept talking. "I will arrange everything so you can attend Gotham Academy with Dick. I can't tell you when you will be allowed to start though," he said.

Danny did not seem to care as he ran over to where Bruce sat behind his desk and promtly hugged him, surprising the both of them. Embarrassed, Danny pulled away. He could feel his cheeks heating up slightly as he made his way to the door, leaving a baffled Bruce behind.

"Thank you, Bruce," Danny said before he left the study.

* * *

The first thing Dick did when he came home from school was look for his brother. When said twelve-year-old did not answer his calls, he began searching the manor. He could not find Danny in either of their bedrooms, nor in the kitchen, library or any other of the likely places for the young boy to hang out. He even tried Bruce's study, but the room was empty. Not beleiving that the man would be down in the cave with Danny - he would not simply reveal his secret like that - Dick made his way back down the stairs to confront Alfred. Maybe the older butler knew where the rest of the household could have disappeared to.

"Hey, Alfred," he greeted as he approached the man, who was currently dusting off a couple picture frames in the entry hall.

"Master Dick," the man acknowledged, turning to him and patiently waiting for the boy to voice his concern.

"Have you seen Danny?"

The butler's expresion stayed the same.

"Last I saw him he went to speak with Master Bruce," Alfred informed him.

Dick furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. Bruce was home already? Did he not have some kind of important meeting today?

"The meeting with Mr. Masters has been rescheduled," Alfred explained as though he had heard Dick's thoughts.

"Oh, okay." Remembering his initial question, he asked, "When was it you last saw Danny?"

"About an hour ago."

"And you haven't seen him since then at all?" Dick pressed but the older man confirmed that he knew nothing of the other twelve-year-old's whereabouts.

"Odd. But thanks anyway. If you do see him, let him know I have somthing to tell him, okay?"

"Of course, Master Dick."

With that, Dick left the butler to himself and his dusting in favour of finding his missing family member. He went out into the manor's giant garden, remembering Danny to have said something about liking it there especially. He even checked behind some bushes, but Danny was still nowhere to be found. Frustrated and slightly worried, Dick made his way back inside and towards his room. If he could not find Danny the conventional way, he would have to switch to Robin tactics. It was not like what he wanted to tell his brother was that important, but as long as he did not know where he was, there was always the chance of Danny being in some kind of danger. Despite usually being the optimistic kind of person, the paranoid side in him won this time. Just as he rounded the corner leading to their bedrooms, Dick heard a muffled thud coming from the direction of Danny's room. Realizing his brother must have entered the room sometime while he had been gone searching, he quickly moved to knock on the door, only to be stopped in his tracks as he saw a strange light shine throught the small gap underneath the door. Without thinking, Dick pushed open the door. There, in the middle of his room, stood Danny, unchanged and unharmed, appearing to be a bit startled by his brother's sudden entry.

"Hey, Dick," Danny casually greeted, but the Batman's protégé could barely detect a hint of nervousness in the other's voice.

Dick shook his head. Maybe he had imagined the weird light...

"Where have you been? I've been searching for you since I got home."

Danny's left hand moved towards the back of his neck, halted, and fell down again by his side.

"I... took a walk?"

If there had been any reasons for Dick to be suspicious before, they would all seem weak now. He definitely did not believe him, and he had a feeling Danny already knew.

"You took a walk."

"Uh, yeah? Is that a problem?"

Dick shook his head and choose to drop the subject for now. Danny needed his space, his privacy, especially after everything that had happened to him.

"I wanted to ask you something," Dick said, remembering to close the door before he made his way over to Danny's bed.

Danny followed him with his gaze and eventually turned around to Dick sitting comfortably on his bed.

"Ask away."

Dick leaned back on his hands, feet dangling over the edge of the bed. He found himself calmer in Danny's presence. He could not explain it, but thinking back on it he would almost go as far as to say that during those years without Danny something had been missing. Like a part of him had been lying in some place he could not reach, locked away, key lost and forgotten.

"I was talking with Babs today and she asked if she could come over after school. I said I'd ask you if you'd be okay with it first. So, what do you think?"

Danny seemed to mull it over for a short moment, before he hesitantly smiled.

"Why not?" he decided. "Your friends are my friends, right?"

An grin formed on Dick's face, not only because he could introduce his brother to one of his best friends, but also because he could not wait to see Barbara's reaction when he did so. After all they had even managed to convince Bruce that Dick was really Danny and vice versa. This was going to be fun.

* * *

Frustrated, she slammed her calculus book shut, leaning back into her chair and closing her eyes. Mathematics never had been one of her best subjects, but she had always been able to at least somehow understand the important gist of it. Only lately her head has not been in the game. At first she had had to worry about her best friend's disappearance. Now that she knew he was safe and sound, she kept thinking about when she would finaly be able to see him again. She understood that he needed time to recover first, to get used to the drastic change in scenery, but the more days passed, the more grew that feeling of uneasiness in the pit of her stomach. She had so many questions. After Danny had called her, he had told her that she should not worry if he was not going to call her again the following couple of days, that he would like to take some time to think everything over before he could talk about everything in more detail. And she certainly respected this. Definitely.

Her thoughs were interrupted by the shrill ringing of the doorbell. Once. Twice. Thrice. She frowned when the sound kept repeating itself. Suddenly the ringing stopped halfway through and Sam could just barely make out her mother's voice downstairs. She had not realized that it had been the phone she had heard. Taking a glance at the clock over her bed she noticed that she had not realized how fast time had passed, either. She leaned forward, propping her elbows on her tighs and rubbed her eyes. She was also tired. All she wanted to do was crawl into her bed and let the distant roar of Amity Park's traffic lull her to sleep. Yeah, that sounded good. Maybe she could just do that. Maths homework was not due until early next week. She could easily-

"Sammy-kins? Samantha, there's someone on the phone for you!"

Groaning, she heaved herself from the chair, pulling the thick socks she had taken off earlier back on and made her way towards her bedroom door.

"Coming!" she shouted, lettig her mother know she had heard and was on her way.

As she was taking her time descending to the first floor, a sudden hope swelled up inside her. What if it was Danny who wanted to talk to her? Not managing to keep her hopes down, she picked up her speed and was grabbing the housephone her mother offered to her. She held it up to her ear and spoke.

"Hello?"

She waited, anticipated, for the caller to identify themselves, to tell her it was Danny.

"Hey Sam."

She slouched, that warm feeling dissipating in an instant upon hearing the voice.

"Oh. Hey Tuck."

She winced inwardly, praying she had not sounded as disappointed as she felt. There was a pause. Sam waited.

"Um, I was just, you know, calling to ask if I should still come over to help you with calculus?"

Oh, right. She had completely forgotten that she had told him about her maths problem. Of course he had immediately offered his help. Tucker was a genius when it came to mathematics. It would have been foolish to refuse his offer. But underneath his words she could make out the awkward strain on their relationship, more so than usual. She knew he was aware that she had hoped he had been someone else. And he knew that she was aware that he was aware. Neither decided to comment on it.

"Yeah, right. Sorry, I totally forgot."

It sounded lame even to her and she began to feel even guiltier. She knew she was being unfair. Tucker was her friend. He had never done anything but help her and be there for her.

"That's okay. I should have called earlier anyway."

She grimaced. Another thing that was her fault and here he was finding a way to put the blame on his shoulders.

"No, no it's my fault. You're the one offering your help. You don't have to help me, so it's my responsibility."

Tucker did not respond, he only sighed and she imagined him pushing his glasses up only to take them off and put them back on the way the were before. She had seen him do it so many times she knew when he was going to do it before he knew it himself.

"Look, I appreciate your offer, I really do. It's just that I'm kinda tired today and I thought I'd go to bed early. Mind doing this another time? Tomorrow, maybe?"

"Hm? Oh, yeah. Yeah, of course. I'm feeling a bit exhausted, too, actually."

"So, see you at school tomorrow?"

"See you there, Sam."

He still sounded so kind, gentle.

"Hey, Tuck?"

She had to let him know how grateful she was.

"Yeah?"

"I'm glad to have you as a friend."

She could hear the smile in his voice when he responed.

"The pleasure is mine, Sam."

* * *

 **I do not own Danny Phantom or any of its characters. Neither do I own Young Justice or any of the DC Universe characters.**

 _ **Aaaand another one! Yay! Please review?**_

 **Alec**

 **[FaHa]**


	10. Chapter Nine

**Chapter Nine**

* * *

It was on the same day still that Dick witnessed Bruce disappearing into the study, meaning that he was going to the cave. Now this may seem like the most normal thing to do for The Batman, but Dick knew better. It was not Bruce's usual time for going down there - he usually tried to eat dinner with Dick (and now Danny) - and Dick was one hundred percent sure that he had not informed him of an especially hard case that required more work than usual. And Batman almost always told Robin about those. So he figured Bruce was either trying to hide something from him, in which case he would find out what it was, or he had been called to an urgent League meeting or something of the sort. He tended to rush off to those without telling every now and then. Deciding that he had enough time to check the cave (and the batcomputer if Bruce wasn't there anymore), he made his way down to the vigilante's secret hideout.

He was almost surprised to find Bruce standing in front of the batcomputer, cowl up and looking like he was about to leave at any moment. Dick could not see his expression from his angle, but his gut told him something was wrong. Letting his disappointment in Bruce due to his failing to tell him what was up drop in favour of worrying what was wrong, he called to his mentor.

"Bruce?"

Dick knew he had heard him and that he was listeneing even though the man apparently did not feel the need to turn around. He waited a moment, thinking, wanting to make sure there was not anything he might have forgotten about. No, he was sure Bruce had not told him of any top secret league meetig that no non-league member was supposed to know of - Bruce always informed him of those - and all apointments Bruce Wayne related were out of the game being that Bruce was in costume.

"Where are you going?"

"Out."

Dick rolled his eyes. _Of course_ that was going to be his answer. He would have to be more specific if he wanted to get information from The Batman.

"Yeah. That's as far as I got. But _where exactly_? I thought there were no major cases or meetings today. Besides, we were going to have dinner now before Babs comes over - in case you forgot about that, too - and I hate lying to Danny as it is. It's harder when you're not even there to eat with us!"

This time, he turned around and Dick was almost able to make out an apologetic look beneath the black cowl. They had had this conversation. Bruce was reluctant to tell Danny about their sercret vigilante lives while Dick claimed it was only fair if he was going to stay with them. (You can guess who had the upper hand in this argument.)

"I know, but this is important. The Watchtower has been attacked."

Dick gasped. How had he not know of that?

"Attacked? When? Why? Who was it?"

Bruce's voice stayed as calm as ever as he relayed the facts.

"A few days ago, an unnown meta with incredible powers, attacked the Watchtower, threatening to destroy it should they not give him what was his. The only members at the scene had been Flash and Martian Manhunter."

"Wait." Dick interrupted, frowning. "Why am I only learning about this now? You said it happened days ago!"

Dick swore he heard the other sigh.

"It was an unknown meta with power levels high enough to rival even Superman. I did not want to worry you, especially not when you needed to be there for Danny."

Now the disappointment was coming back full force. Who did Bruce think he is?

"Oh yeah? Well guess what, it's my job to worry about these things, too! Just as much as it is your job to be there for Danny, as well. You could've at least told me where you were going today."

For a second, guilt seemed to flash across the billionaire's face, but it was replaced with his usual stoic expression so fast that, had he not been trained by The Batman, Dick would have easily missed it.

"Doesn't matter now. I am required to be at an emergency meeting in a few minutes to further discuss this being. _Stay here_ , Dick. We don't know what this meta wants, but it is beyond dangerous. I will be back as soon as I can."

Bruce turned towards the zeta tubes already on his way to leave when Dick interrupted him a last time.

"Bruce?"

The vigilante stopped to indicate his attention was on his ward.

"Can I tell Barbara about this meta?" His voice was hopeful and when the other did not answer right away, he added, "Please?"

Dick could not see it, but for some reason he imagined Bruce was smiling at least a tiny bit.

"You would do it anyway, wouldn't you?"

Despite his previous negative emotions, Dick laughed a little and had Bruce been Bruce instead of Batman, Dick was sure he would have laughed, too. He watched his mentor vanish in a flash of golden light before he went back up to the manor. Danny was already awaiting him at the table by the time he entered the dining room. The hopeful smile on his face turned into a light frown when he saw no one follow his brother inside.

"Is Bruce not coming?" Danny asked carefully.

Dick thought he knew what the other might be thinking. When he first came to the manor he had not been sure when it would seem appropriate to feel sad when Bruce could not eat with him. To be honest, he had been from the first day on, but it had seemed weird for him to show this when he did not actually know the man much.

"I'm sorry. He had to leave for an urgent meeting, he said it's important."

Danny dropped his head on his hand, looking annoyed and disappointed.

"I am never going in that job direction," he declared and Dick found himself agreeing.

He took the seat opposite from Danny on the left end of the long dining table and they ate in silence. Alfred'd cooking was as good as every day and no food stayed on the plates. For someone who had recently lost his while family, Danny had a pretty good appetite, not that that was a bad thing, just something the protégé of Batman noticed. Actually, Danny was doing exceptionally well after everything that had happened to him. It stunned the Boy Wonder, to say the least. However, he could not rule out the possibility that Danny was just pretending to be okay in front of him, Bruce and Alfred. Dick did not know if Danny let out all his grief in his room when he was alone or if he even just kept it in completely. Whatever the case, Dick did not like it one bit. But how would help him? Maybe he would know the answer after he waited a while longer. He was going to give his brother hus space. And then he was going to make sure he knows how to fill up that empty space in his heart where someone had ripped away what he had held most dear. The doorbell interrupted his thoughts. Dick smiled at Danny amd motioned for him to follow him.

"That must be Babs. Come on!"

The less happy thoughts forgotten for the moment, Dick led Danny to the front door, where Alfred had already opened the door to a girl who was maybe a year older than them with red hair and blue eyes. She was just giving Alfred her jacket, thanking him when both boys arrived, Dick up front and Danny awkwardly lingering the slightest bit behind.

"Hey Babs," Dick greeted, a huge grin in place on his face.

"Hey Dickhead," Barbara returned, adapting the grin. "Wow, you look exactly the same," she added when she caught sight of Danny.

Dick took a small step to the side as Barbara inspected her friends brother, who waved shyly.

"Hi. I'm Danny."

"Name's Barbara. Nice to meet you."

Danny smiled friendly while Barbara just outright grinned. Her gaze kept going back and forth between the two twelve-year-olds.

"This is _so_ cool," she decided and both boys chuckled a little. "You know, you don't only look the same, you sound the same, too!" Her eyes widened. "Oh my god, think of all the pranks you can pull off together!"

Dick smirked and gave Danny a meaningful look, which Barbara noticed.

"Oh no," she said. "You will not pull those pranks on me, you hear me? You would totally regret that."

Dick gasped and put a hand on his chest, right over his heart.

"But Barbara! You could never hurt me. You know you love me!"

Danny laughed and Barbara narrowed her eyes.

"Don't test me." She put an arm around Danny's shoulders, smirking at Dick. "Besides, I have him now. If I _accidentally_ destroy your handsome face, Grayson, I can always take this one!"

The three agreed to play some _**video games**_ in Dick's room for a while. Dick was delighted to see how well Danny and Barbara got along already. He could see them become great friends and it did not bother him at all. They were all having a lot of fun, even though the only girl amongst them kept beating them at nearly every game they played. Dick knew he could easily hack such a game, he did not mind losing. He had already won, after all.

The next thing he was going to need to do was introduced Wally to his brother. It had taken lots of convincing to stop Wally from abandoning the giant amount of homework he still had to finish and running over to the manor. Apparently, Wally did not care about getting killed by the bat or getting scolded by his uncle. Actually, he should only really be careful of Bruce, Barry he could handle. Why would Bruce kill him, you ask? Now that would probably be because it would give away that Wally knew of his identity. Dick always had to check that Bruce was not home every time he wanted to come over. It was annoying, but as long as they got to spend time together, Dick did not mind the trouble.

Some time into their playing, Danny put his controller down and stood up.

"I'm gonna use the bathroom real quick."

"M'kay," Barbara said and Dick just nodded.

He welcomed the moment of privacy with Barbara since he finally had time to tell her about the meta-attack on the Watchtower. Her previous smiling expression turned into a worried frown as shr yook in the news.

"He sounds powerful. What is the League doing about it?"

Dick shrugged unhappily.

"Don't know. Bruce is at an emergency meeting because of it right now. Guess that's where they're discussing what to do."

"What do you think it is he wanted?" Barbara wondered curiously.

He sighed. He was asking himself the same thing.

"I don't know." He huffed. "I hate bot knowing about these kinds of things!" he said, throwing his arms up.

Of course, Danny chose that exact moment to reenter the room. Both Barbara and Dick plastered innocent smiles onto their faces, but it was too late.

"Uh, is something wrong?"

"No, no. Why are you asking?" Barbara replied in a tone that was just a tad too cheerful to be natural.

Danny barely narrowed his eyes at them.

"Because," Dick swore he could hear disappointment in his brother's voice. "You two looked concerned when I came in and as soon as you noticed me you acted like nothing was up."

Barbara and Dick shared a nervous glance.

"Uh... well, you see-"

"Dick is having trouble with his boyfriend!" Barbara blurted out, much to Dick's horror and Danny's confusion.

He slowly looked from Barbara to Dick, brows creased.

"Your... boyfriend?"

Dick frantically shook his head while Barbara nodded.

"Yeah, his name's Wally. He didn't tell you?"

She looked at Dick, a mishevious glint in her eyes that definitely foretold bad things. He felt his face heat up and the (evil) smirk on her lips only grew.

"O-of course I didn't tell him! Uh, I mean, he's not my boyfriend!" Dick half-stuttered, making Danny raise a knowing eyebrow.

"Uh-huh." He nodded towards Barbara. "I see where you're coming from."

Dick was about to say something to further defend himself when an alarm sounded throughout the manor. Instantly, he was in Robin mode, rushing over to his desk and picking up his phone. His worry grew as the warning message on the screen confirmed his suspicions.

"Dick? What's going on?" Danny asked, voice almost unnoticably shaky.

Barbara came up behind him, pytting a hand on hid shoulder.

"What does the alarm mean, Dick?"

Her voice was as steady as always, but Dick knew she was worried. He turned around with a serious expression.

"He's here."

* * *

 **I do not own Danny Phantom or any of its characters. Neither do I own Young Justice or any of the DC Universe characters.**

 ** _A whole chapter and not a single breakline! Wow. Not interesting at all. But I hope you liked the chapter (especially the nice little cliffhanger)!_**

 **Alec :D**

 **[FaHa]**


	11. Chapter Ten

**Chapter Ten**

* * *

Danny did not have much time to comprehend the situation before he was pulled out of the room and down the hallway. Dick was heading in the direction of Bruce's study while holding onto his arm and it confused him to no end. After a moment he tugged his arm away from Dick's steel grip (Thank you, ghostly strength!) and stopped dead in the middle of the hallway. Barbara nearly ran into him from behind and Dick skidded to a stop in front of him.

"Okay," Danny said. "I am not going anywhere before you give me some answers," he declared.

He noticed how Barbara and Dick shared a glance and he noticed how alert they both were. And he had no idea why. All he had been told was _"He is here"_ and he had no idea what that was supposed to mean.

"We'll explain everything, but right now we need to go," Dick urged grabbing for Danny's sleeve, but this time he dodged the movement.

"No," he insisted. "I want to know what's going on. Who is here?"

Dick sighed, obviously not sure how to answer.

"It's hard to explain like this. But I can tell you that it is someone dangerous and if we don't leave _now_ we'll all be in a lot of trouble."

Seeing just how serious his brother was, Danny gave in and they kept going. His answers would have to wait, it seemed. They arrived at the study and they all hurriedly entered.

"Wait. I thought we were leaving the manor," Danny objected. "What are we doing here?"

Barbara allowed herself a mysterious  
smirk.

"Just watch."

Could he not get one straight answer? But his frustration soon morphed into curiosity as Dick tinkered with the old grandfather clock against the wall. Danny could only stare as the opening revealed an actual secret entry. In a world of superheroes and ghosts, (Heck, he was some weird kind of hybrid species himself!) he really should not have been surprised. As it was, Danny was very surprised. Before he could say anything though, he was pushed inside by Barbara, right after Dick and all three of them stood in an elevator. The clock closed behind them and they descended. He did not know what to expect. Some sort of panic room? A bunker? Maybe a lab, like the one from his parents?

Perhaps if Danny had been more interested in superheroes, he would have taken other things into consideration as well. He knew the city he now resided in had their own heroes, Batman, Robin and Batgirl, but as long as he did not run into one of them, he was not going to pay them much of his attention. Tucker had always been more into these sorts of things. While his best friend had read superhero comics like _The Flash_ and _Argas and Fauna_ , Danny had preferred reading books about the solar system and outer space in general. When he had asked Dick what he thought about Gotham's vigilantes, said boy had adapted a huge grin, then only said that Batman was his favourite hero, but that Robin and Batgirl deserved more credit for everything he did. Despite his claims, Danny had seen more Kid Flash articles in his brother's room than anything Bat-themed.

The reason for this became clear the moment the doors of the elevator opened and they stepped outside. Danny gaped at the giant cave they were in. He realized that Dick did not need anything Bat-themed in his room. He had a whole batcave in his basement. _The_ Batcave, to be exact. Danny might not have been very well-educated in anything Batman related, but he knew enough to understand where they were. From where the elevator ended, a wide stairway lead down to the main part of the cave. Slightly on the right of the opposite wall, Danny could make out a giant computer screen with a wide console underneath that looked too complicated for Danny to ever figure out. There were tables with seemingly unfinished projects, like weapons or other various items and to the left Danny spotted multiple different sized hallways leadig to unnown parts of the hideout. Next to the computer Danny could see three man-sized glass cases. One of them was empty, while the one in the middle held a multicoloured outfit in red, black and yellow with a cape and the one on the right held a more feminine looking costume mostly held in violet with yellow accents. Yes, Danny did recognize them.

He tore his gaze away from the breathtaking view of the Batcave and glanced at Dick and Barbara who started to make their way downstairs, dragging him along. Dick instantly walked up to the computer console and started typing away.

"How quick can you change?" Dick asked without taking his eyes off the screen.

Danny tensed, trying not to panic. How could Dick have known about his secret? But then Barbara responded.

"Give me a minute."

Dick nodded and Barbara walked up to the right case, opened it and took out the costume to go change. Danny did not say a word. He felt like freaking out and shouting things like _Oh my god! You're Batgirl! So does that mean Dick is Robin?! Is Bruce Batman?! This is so cool! My brother is a superhero!_ but he kept his mouth shut. Dick had promised he would get his answers, but after they got somewhere safe. Where they safe here? Or where they going to go somewhere else?

"Alright." Dick closed the windows he had opened on yhe conputer and turned around to where Barbara - now Batgirl - was just exiting the changing room. "I set the cave on lockdown and sent a message to B, telling him we're coming to the Watchtower because of an emergency. Give me a minute to get changed."

Danny watched quietly, in awe, as his brother went to exchange his normal clothes for his hero costume. Batgirl was still the whole time and she avoided eyecontact with Danny. When Dick stepped out to join them, Danny realized why no one ever figured out Robin's secret identity. Dick was almost entirely hidden behind a mask. And Danny was not talking about the piece of fabric covering his brother's eyes. Robin's stance was more confident than Dick's, who, although having a straight posture, did not radiate the kind of assurance and safety that Robin possessed. His insecurities and doubts were invisible behind his calm features and he radiated a sense of leadership.

Dick gave him an unsure glance but quickly composed himself, presumably focusing on more imoortant matters than explaining that he was Robin (a freaking superhero!).

"Let's go," he said, already walking toward what looked like a fancy telephone booth.

"Wait," Barbara spoke up. "Are we even allowed to jist bring him with us like that?"

Dick gave an almost unnoticable headshake.

"We don't of a choice. Come on."

Danny awkwardly followed the two vigilantes into the telephone booth. Dick was typing something into a console, Barbara looking over his shoulder.

"Alright, we're ready. Sorry, Danny, but this might feel a bit uncomfortable the first time," Dick warned and Danny prepared himself for whatever was to happen. He involuntarily thought back to the ghost portal and suddenly he was filled with panic. Part of him knew it was not going to be like it was back then, but the panicking part of him was stronger. He shook his head and hurriedly stepped out of the booth, startling Dick and Barbara.

"Danny! Come on, we gotta go, now," his brother urged but Danny barely even heard him.

His breathing grew more frantic and he took a few more steps backwards. He did not know why he was doing this, why he could not bring himself to even respond to his brother. He just knew that he could not do it.

"Danny?" Barbara called carefully, her and Dick now donning equally concerned expressions. "What's wrong?"

All Danny managed was another shale of the head. Dick shoved himself past Barbara and came to stand in front of him, slughtly reaching out with his right hand, then hesitanting and letting it hand in the air between them.

"...what is it? I promise the Zeta-tubes don't hurt or anything. We use them to teleport. They can transport people really fast. And we- hey, it's okay, Danny," Dick soothed and Danny tried focusing on his voice.

Was he having a panic attack? It had never happened to him before and it scared him. Did Dick realize what was happening? Danny tried to focus on those questions and his brother, slowly forgetting about the ghost portal. His breathing became more regular again and he started to calm down.

"Yeah, that's it. Breathe, Danny."

Dick put his hands on Danny's shoulders and looked him in the eyes through the white lenses of his mask.

"You better?"

Danny nodded and suddenly felt incresibly embarrassed about the whole deal. Of course he would be safe if Barbara and Dick (Batgirl and Robin, for goodness sake!) were with him, but for some reason, his mind had just skipped past all rational thoughts and gone straight into panic mode. He was probably blushing by now.

"Guys? We really need to leave, lije, right now," Barbara said, eyes flitting over the ceiling as though she were searching for bats.

"Do you think you can do it now?" Dick asked him and Danny glanced at the telephone booth - Zeta tube - before nodding hesitantly.

"Okay."

The went back over to the entrance and Dick went in first. Just as Danny was about to step inside, he heard a voice that sent shivers down his spine and made him freeze.

"Where do you think you're going, Daniel?"

* * *

 **I do not own Danny Phantom or any of its characters. Neither do I own Young Justice or any of the DC Universe characters.**

 _ **I'm sorry. Honestly. But only because this is shorter than usual. It wasn't supposed to be.**_

 _ **Actually, the original plan had been to just let them go into the Zeta tube and go to the Watchtower... But then I took a different turn and it came to this and then**_

Me: *writes that last line* hey look. That would make a great cliffhanger

Me: *laughs* what a shame I'm gonna write the whole scene... Me: Me: Me: ohhhhhhh wait Me: *stops writing to leave it as a cliffhanger* Me: There you are my loyal readers!

 _ **See you next chapter ;)**_

 **Alec :D**

 **[FaHa]**


	12. Chapter Eleven

**Chapter Eleven**

* * *

 _"Where do you think you're going, Daniel?"_

* * *

Danny did not turn around, too afraid of what he would see. No one moved. Dick's shoulders were tense, as were Barbara's. Danny's eyes followed his brother's left hand slowly inch towards the utility belt secured around his waist. Both young heroes narrowed their eyes at the being that had spoken, both knowing enough to understand in what dangerous of a situation they were in.

"Why don't you turn around to look at me, boy."

Vlad's cold tone made it clear he was not asking him to do so, instead making it an order. Summoning all his courage, Danny carefully turned around to face the man from all his nightmares. He was floating above the ground, red and white cape flattering in a nonexistent wind behind him. There was a seemingly friendly smile on his face but the murderous gleam in the ghost's eyes told him there was no good in this man's intentions. The guy was insane and evil, Danny was sure, and he knew that was one of the worst combinations your opponent could have.

"Why so quiet? You know you need not be afraid of you father, Daniel."

"Father?" Dick mumbled behind him, so quiet that he would not have caught it without his slightly inhensed senses.

Vlad smirked and Danny knew he had heard it, too.

"Why, if it isn't the Boy Wonder and one of his partners," he taunted. "I wonder what Batman's companions are doing underneath Bruce Wayne's home... oh wait, Batman _is_ Bruce Wayne."

It impressed Danny that neither Dick nor Barbara allowed their guards to be lowered despite someone just having found out who The Batman was. Still, Dick's voice held barely surpressed anger as he spoke.

"What do you want?" he demanded, ignoring the words of the specter before them.

"What is rightfully mine, of course."

The possessive glint in the man's blood red eyes almost made Danny feel like he was right. Almost.

"Nothing here belongs to you, creep!"

Barbara stepped out of the Zeta tube, standing beside Danny, who was grateful for the support but feared for his newfound friends. They did not have the slightest idea just what they were dealing with. Vlad chuckled darkly, looking Danny directly in the eyes.

"I am afraid you are wrong, _Batgirl_ ," he sneered. "There is nothing you can do. Daniel will come with me."

Dick shoved himself past Danny and stood in front of him protectively while Barbara readied herself to grab him and get him into the Zeta tube.

"Danny isn't going anywhere with you," Dick declared.

At the sight of the two heroes being hell bent on defending him, Vlad's expression darkened further. This was all his fault, Danny thought. He should have known this was not over and that Vlad would try to come and get him. He had put the people who had taken it upon themselves to care for him in danger by not telling anyone about what had happened. But then again he had not known his new guardian was The Batman and that he would have actually believed him had he told him there was an evil, psychopathic ghost after him. Still, this could possibly have been prevented. Instead, they were now standing here, with little to no chance of defeating Vlad, let alone defending themselves.

Maybe Danny should just go with him. There was a chance Vlad would not kill him and at least Dick and Barbara would be safe. As much as the man scared him, the thought of the two getting hurt scared him so much more.

"Oh, you think you can save him?" Vlad laughed coldly. "You should learn not to underestimate your opponent, children."

It all happened fast. Vlad's hand glowed pink and Danny reflexively took a defensive stance. Dick and Barbara noticed, too, but it was too quick for them to understand what exactly the ghost was doing. Just as the pink ray was about to hit them, a pair of white rings travelled up and down Danny's body and he transformed, barely putting up a green shield of ecto energy in time to deflect Vlad's attack.

"Danny?" Dick gasped, giving him a wide eyed look but quickly composing himself.

"Go!" he pressed out, having a hard time keeping his shield up while Vlad was attacking him almost full force.

"I'm not leaving you," Dick said determinedly and as much as it frustrated him, Danny felt relieved to know his brother would not abandon him after finding out he was not as normal as he had seemed.

Barbara nodded along and both took out their weapons. When an especially powerfull blast made contact with the glowing green shield, Danny was pushed back and the shield flickered out of existence. Dick immediately threw one of his birdarangs at Vlad but the older ghost used his intangibility to let it sail harmlessly through him. This was what Danny had feared. He doubted any of the weapons Dick and Barbara had with them would have an effect on the older halfa, making him basically impossible to defeat. Although, maybe if they had a weapon made for - what did they call them? - metahumans. Maybe one of those could be used against ghosts, too? Still, Vlad was much too powerful.

Danny send a row of his own green spheres of energy towards him, most of which Vlad deflected with his own shield, while those who managed to hit their target barely pushed the man back, however leaving slightly glowing burn marks on his white suit. Vlad growled and shot forward, intending to tackle Danny, who managed to dodge. But of course it would not be so easy. Vlad swiftly turned, sending two more ecto-beams towards Dick and Barabara. Standing closer to Barbara at the moment, Danny managed to deflect the blast with a small shield. Dick tried to move but was not fast enough and the blast still managed to graze his left arm.

Seeing this, Danny was fuelled with a fresh wave of hartred for the older half-ghost. After causing the death of his parents and sister, he now dared to hurt his brother, too? Danny was not going to let that happen again. Faster than the two humans could comprehend, Danny lunged at Vlad, catching him off guard and hitting him in the stomach. Vlad, not having expected such an attack, was too late to correctly defend himself of the concentrated ecto-blast that followed and crashed into ground. Danny did not know how this was possible. Vlad was so much stronger than him, yet he had somehow managed to get to him this much.

He had no time to further think about it, knowing they had to leave now while they had the chance. Vlad was not going to let himself be caught off guard again. Locking eyes with his brother, he nodded and they both hurried to the zeta tube, Danny pulling Barbara with him. They were all inside when Vlad was standing again, eyes ablaze with anger and determination. Thankfully, the coordinates were already typed in and the last thing Danny saw before he was encased in a golden light was a furious Vlad Plasmius glaring after them.

* * *

They soon came tumbling out of a very similar telephone booth - zeta tube - but their surroundings had changed drastically. Instead of the dark, wide cave they had fought in, they were now looking at a room with large windows on all sides and - of course - a giant computer screen. Unlike the last time though, they were not alone. Waiting for them were a man in blue with a red cape, a blonde woman in black, and Batman.

The three young teenagers quickly picked themselves up and stood before the League members, Danny appearing much less confident than the others. On top of the _OMG I'm in the Justice League HQ_ part, there was also the part of him still being in his ghost form. He was so doomed. Dick looked like he was about to explain when Batman turned his back to them and started walking sown a hallway.

"Follow me," he growled and for a moment Danny forgot that this was Bruce.

Both of them being the same person at the same time made so much sense and no sense at all. And while Danny was slightly disappointed that this had been kept secret from him, he had to remind himself that he was no better, keeping his own secret to himself. They seemed to reach Batman's desired destination when said man turned another corner and entered the first room to the left. It did not take long for Danny to realize they were in some sort of super high-tech infirmary. Everyone entered, the woman in black - Danny knew he had at least seen a picture of her before, but could not remember her name - going last, closing the door behind her.

"Robin," Batman said.

Dick seemed to understand as he went to sit down on one of the white cots, already taking off his glove. Danny had nearly forgotten that his brother had gotten injured during their confrontation with Vlad. Batman immediately started addressing his protégé's arm and for a short while no one talked. All Danny wanted to do right now was disappear under the cold stares of the older heroes. At least they were safe from Vlad for now... right?

"What about you two?" the woman asked, looking at Barbara and Danny. "Did you get hurt?"

They both shook their heads. Danny didn't trust his voice at the moment.  
The questions and thoughts about everything were spinning through his mind like a swarm of disoriented bees, threatening to make his head explode should he not let them out soon. But he knew he had to wait. He supposed if anyone needed to answer some questions first, it was him.

"Who are you?" Superman - yes, Danny recognized the famous hero, thank you very much - demanded.

Danny had expected Batman to ask, but perhaps the man already knew the answer to that question. Danny was unsure how to respond. Should he say his real name? Should he just transform? Give a vague answer? He glanced in Dick's direction and they locked eyes. His brother must have picked up on his conflicting thoughts and nodded encouragingly, tapping on his mask with a finger. Danny let his eyes move over all the occupants of the room and took a deep breath. Then he transformed back into his human form, causing the older heroes' eyes to widen.

"Um, my name is Daniel. Fenton. And I am, um, I'm Robin's... brother."

The woman in black looked between Robin and him and lastly to Batman. While Superman looked like he had been slapped in the face. Then he seemed to remember something as he narrowed his eyes at Danny in a very much suspicious way.

"You are a meta?" he asked and to Danny it felt like it would be a bad thing to say yes, so instead he chose to simply say the truth.

"I'm... a halfa."

He knew the term was probably not very famous outside of the ghost zone, but it was the best fitting for his unique species.

"A halfa?" Batman inquired.

Danny fidgeted with his shirt sleeves and tried to look anywhere but at the other heroes.

"It means I'm half human and half... um, ghost," he explained awkwardly and he was not surprised by the disbelief he encountered right away.

"Ghosts don't exist," Batman said, his emotionless voice daring Danny to disagree.

Danny shook his head.

"They're real! I can prove it! Ghosts can go through stuff, tight? Watch this."

He turned intangible and walked right through one of the infirmary beds. Superman's expression told Danny he was the easiest to convince, but Batman's opinion could not be wavered so easily.

"Martian Manhunter can density shift. This does not prove the existence of ghosts," he argued.

Danny frowned, thinking. What else could he do?

"What about invisibility?" he offered.

"Martians can also use camouflage. You could be a martian trying to convince us of being someone else." Batman narrowed his eyes. "Is your name even really Daniel Fenton?"

Danny did not know what to do. Why were a martian's powers so similiar to a ghost's? He had never heard much about them in Amity Park. While he was a space fanatic, he had always assumed the guy just called himself Martian Manhunter because he was green. Most reports and many scientists did not believe there was life on Mars, so Danny had not, either. He decided to ignore the question of his identity. Also, had Batman not let his DNA be compared to Dick's?

"Um... flight then?"

Dick shook his head at him. Danny guessed he'd had to do something else. But was there anything else that people connected to ghosts that he could do? He knew now that ghosts were quite a bit different from what people believed they were. Not all ghosts were dead people, either. But maybe he could at least prove that he was not a martian? Would they believe him being Danny Fenton then?

"Okay. Look, ghosts aren't what most think they are. There's more we can do."

He held up his hand and it lit up with green energy. He let his eyes glow along with it for emphasis. It seemed to work.

"Fine. You're not martian then," Superman concluded.

"I'm half-ghost," Danny added.

"I saw the video feed from the cave," Batman said. "The one who attacked you, is he the same as you?"

Danny dropped the energy and his hand and eyes returned to normal. He bit his lip, not knowing whether he should reveal Vlad. Sure, he hated the man. But if he found out he woukd surely want to kill him even more. Finally feeling to intimidated by the older heroes - one of them was in charge of him now after all - he gave in. Might as well be honest now, these were the good guys.

"Yeah. He's the only one like me," he revealed.

"There are no other... halfas?"

Danny shook his head.

"There's many other ghosts out there, but no other halfas," he confirmed. "At least as far as I know," he added as and afterthought.

"Do you know why he attacked you? Do you know who he is?" the woman asked.

Danny quickly looked at Dick, silently pleading him not to say anything about the 'father' comment. But he did not answer.

"Daniel? Do you know this being?"

Danny swallowed hard and then looked Batman in the eyes.

"He's the one who killed my family."

* * *

 **I do not own Danny Phantom or any of its characters. Neither do I own Young Justice or any of the DC Universe characters.**

 ** _Hello my dear readers! Yes, you have just read a new chapter of ILIOG. This is not a hoax._**

 ** _And yes, I should really work on Knowing Family... Well. One at a time, right? Should've thought of that when I decided to start a second story. owo  
_**

 ** _At least I didn't leave you at another horrible cliffhanger again. Two in a row seemed to take a toll on you guys. Do you know how many "I hate you so much right now"s I got?_**

 ** _Hope you liked it._**

 **Alec :D**


	13. Chapter Twelve

**Chapter Twelve**

* * *

Batman, Superman and Black Canary stood outside the med bay room. The Dark Knight was watching Danny, Barbara and Dick inside through the window next to the door. They were talking, probably telling each other about the exciting adventures and people they had experienced and met. Every time he saw Danny's lips move he wondered what he was not saying. He had told them about his time in what they had learned was the Ghost Zone, but Bruce felt like there was more to it, things they still did not know, maybe did not want to know. During the short time Danny had spent at the manor he had been a little quiet at times, seemed lost in thought when Bruce passed him on occasion, and he could not forget the time he heard the twelve-year-old cry in his room before he fell asleep. But never would he have guessed-

"Do you really think he'll try again?" Dinah Lance asked as she stood next to him, brows furrowed in concern.

Bruce's expression - as was to be expected - didn't waver.

"Plasmius may seem like a new threat to us, but thanks to Danny we know more about hin that he should know about us."

"So he'll come for him, right? He most likely knows Danny must have told us everything," Clark Kent said.

 _Not everything_ , Bruce thought.

"I have worked with Masters before," he suddenly revealed. "I can assure you he is a confident man who takes whatever he wants." His fists clenched in anger. "He will come back."

The other two would not dare doubt it.

"So what's the plan?" Clark asked, knowing that if anyone had one, it was Batman.

"The children are our priority. For now they will stay here, supervised at all times. We need to inform the rest of the League of the situation and warn everyone of Masters. Given that he knows Robin's and my identity, we can't tell what else he might know."

"Bruce," Dinah lifted a hand as if to put it onto his shoulder. "Last time he-"

"I know what happened last time," Bruce interrupted the heroine. "But this time we will be prepared."

Not waiting for a response, he went back inside the room, catching the attention of the three younger occupants. Bruce decided to get straight to the point.

"Danny, how much do you know about your parents' work?"

He desperately hoped the subject did not make the boy as uncomfortable as he feared. Danny blinked his green eyes at him, suprised at the question.

"I, uh... guess I know some stuff. They used to explain a lit to me and U often went through their notes on my own when they were out..." He seemed a little caught up in the past for a moment before shaking himself out of it quickly. "Why do you ask?"

"Do you think you can help reconstruct some of their anti-ghost weaponry?"

Danny scrunched his face up and hummed as he shrugged, but nodded.

"A few of their things maybe. But I'd need some of their notes. One of my friends still has a copy that I left with him for safe keeping. I could call him."

Bruce nodded.

"Tell him to send it to Wayne manor."

"Um, I'll also need the material and everything," Danny reminded him.

"That won't be a problem," Bruce assured. "How dangerous are those machines?"

Danny gave another shrug and a sly grin graced his features.

"For me? Very dangerous. Building them? With the right skills and knowledge, not much of a problem."

"Good." Bruce turned his back to them and walked towards the door. "Stay at the Watchtower and don't go anywhere without telling one of the League members." He opened the door and stopped. "Understood?"

With confirmation from the three, he left the room again.

* * *

"Where'd you get that?" Danny asked as Dick returned to the main room of the Watchtower, a not-so-cheap looking cell phone in his gloved hands.

"Batman's room. I've got some spare stuff in there," Dick explained.

"Including a spare _cell phone_?"

Dick leaned against the glass front covering most of the room's outer wall.

"Yeah. It comes in handy."

Barbara snatched the phone from his hands and examined it.

"My cell's not nearly as good as this " she complained, turning it on to a standard background that wouldn't tell anyone a single thing about its owner. A single notification blinked to life on the glowing screen and Barbara squinted to read it. "Hey Dick, you have a missed call from..." She snorted. "Lawrence Jackson?"

"Give me that!"

Dick took the phone back, glaring at his friend.

"Who's Lawrence Jackson?" Danny aksed, craning his neck to try and catch a glimpse of the phone screen.

Dick mumbled out an answer that only Danny was able to understand with his enhanced hearing. When he laughed aloud, Barbara stared at Danny, confused about the reaction.

"Huh? What did he say?"

Dick groaned.

"I said, _Lawrence Jackson_ is Wally. I told B it's a friend from school so he wouldn't know Wally knows my identity."

"And so he thinks you actually have friends in school," Barbara added unhelpfully, causing Danny to erupt into another laugh.

Dick nodded absentmindedly and frowned at his phone.

"Though I'm surprised he tried this number. I told him not to use it unless he had to."

"Yeah, but it said he only called a couple minutes ago," Barbara said. "Poor Wally," she added, shaking her head sadly. "He must be sick with worry!"

Danny's face broke into a grin.

"Yeah," he agreed. "You should call him back immediately and let him know you're okay."

Dick nodded distractedly and was about to simply agree when Barbara clapped her hands together proudly.

"Exactly! Do it like the good boyfriend you are!"

Dick threw his hands up in a frustrated manner.

"He's _not_ my boyfriend!"

Grumbling, he dialed the number anyway. His call was picked up immediately

 _"Dude!_ _Where are you?"_

Dick had to pull the phone away from his ear for a moment, the volume of his friends words making his ears ring. Even Barbara had been able to understand what he said - no hightened senses needed.

"No need to shout," he said. He glanced at Danny and Barabara. "I'm at the Watchtower."

 _"Oh, okay- Wait, what?!"_

"Wally! Tone it down, will you?"

 _"Right. Sorry,"_ he apologized. _"What happened? Uncle Barry wouldn't tell me anything before he left."_

Dick sighed. Danny knew whole situation was messed up and he would not know what to tell anyone who was knew to it, either.

"It's... complicated."

On the other end of the line Wally grumbled.

 _"It's always complicated!"_

"I know."

 _"Alright,"_ Wally paused. _"Are you hurt? Is Bats with you or are you alone?"_

"I'm not hurt."

Danny saw his brother's hand and looked away. He knew he should probably blame Vlad for this - that's what the others told him - but he could not help but feel guilty. If anyone should have been hit, it was him. He was the reason Vlad had attacked them. Maybe it was his destiny to end up in another dimension and-

No! Even if it was, he had already escaped and he would fight against it. He was not alone, he knew. Yes, he should not have let his brother get hurt, but he had forgiven him, right? So it was okay. They would be okay and they would defeat Vlad. Why did his life have to gt so complicated, anyway?

 _"You better not be lying,"_ Wally warned, but Danny knew there was no real threat behind it, only worry. _"And my other question? Is Batman with you?"_

"No."

 _"So you're alone?"_

"I'm with Barbara and- Yeah. I'm with Barbara."

Danny frowned as he heard this. Why did Dick not say that he was with Danny? Sure, they had not met each other yet, but it was no secret that he lived with Dick and Bruce. Well to the press it still was. That would change soon, too though when he was going to start school again. _If I'm going to start school again,_ he thought.

 _"That's good. Now what the heck are you doing at the Watchtower?"_

As Dick told his friend about a meta human attack and how their identities had been compromised - without mentioning his brother - Danny realized he must have kept his existence from Wally. From what he had gathered so far, the two were really close, so he did not understand why Dick would not tell the older boy about him. Maybe he should ask him about it.

He looked back up at Dick the moment his brother's eyes widened and he called into the cell phone.

"No, Wally, you're not allowed to-"

A whooshing sound accompanied the arrival of said person

"Come here," Dick finished, looking about ready to bang his head against a wall.

Wally was in his Kid Flash costume, cowl up and grinning. Danny held his hand up in a short wave.

"Hey."

* * *

She quietly made her way down the dark hallway, carefully peeking around every corner before continuing. So far there had only been one close call, but there was no saying she would not be caught until she reached her destination. The last hallway was almost pitch black and she tried to dimm her own glow as to not stand out as much in the dark. As she arrived at what looked like a dead end, she looked back over her shoulder, making sure no one was following her. Breathing a sigh of relief, she turned back to the wall and touched a specific area with her energy. The wall opened up before soundlessly and she slipped inside.

"What took you so long?"

She did not bother and went to take her assigned seat - the only one still empty. It was obvious they had already begun. Good. They could not afford to lose a single minute. Their meetings had become less. They needed to be careful, could not make even one tiny mistake. Not again. Last time they had failed to realize their mistake before it had been too late. She had almost-

"Desiree!"

Her train of thought was suddenly interrupted and her head snapped up at the voice. She straightened her posture and folded her hands in front of her, clearing her throat. Everyone was staring at her like that again; she knew it without taking a glance at any of them. She schooled her expression before answering.

"I'm sorry, I will try to pay more attention from now on," she apologized.

"No," Ghost Writer said from the other side of the table, surprising her.

"...no?"

"Maybe you should take a break," he suggested.

Take a break? Was he crazy?

"We need every support we have. I can't take a _break._ "

He gave her a look that clearly told her she should know he was right.

"I know you're worried about him. You're distracted. And that's dangerous, especially for one of us."

She took a deep breath, squashing down her frustration and anger with the thoughts that told her he was telling the truth. Being distracted was indeed very dangerous. If they were discovered a second time-

"We should probably forget about him anyway," a ghost farther to her right spoke up. "Now that Plasmius knows where he-"

Another specter next to him clapped a hand over his mouth and gave him a look. He glanced around with wide eyes, horrified expressions meeting his fearful one from around the table.

"What?" Desiree breathed.

"Nothing," Ghost Writer growled.

They all averted their eyes, some glaring down at the table in shame. No one spoke, too scared of her reaction. They had kept this from her, she realized. All of them.

"He knows where Danny is," she said, the information slowly starting to sink in and reveal its true meaning. "He- Why?" She looked at each of them with pleading eyes full of hurt and disappointment. "Why didn't you tell me?" she demanded.

A few uncertain looks were shared and she could see them debating what to say.

"Why didn't you tell me?!" she repeated, standing up and throwing her hands down onto the table.

Ghost Writer held his hands up carefully.

"Now, calm down-"

"No!" she interrupted him. "How could you dare keep this from me?! How long has Plasmius known?"

The male ghost's gaze dropped to the floor.

"Only for about two days."

"Two days?! And you didn't think this might be important for me to know? Am I not a part of this just like all of you?"

He sighed.

"Of course you are, Desiree," he assured. "But we didn't want you to worry about the boy even more than you already were," he explained, causing several ghosts to nod and murmur in agreement.

Her aura flared in anger and growing worry.

"It is not your place to decide that!" she protested. "I need to go check on him," she declared.

Ghost Writer's eyes widened.

"You can't! What if Plasmius finds out? Also, you have no idea where he is."

Desiree's expression was grim and determined, her plan already set in her mind.

"Don't worry." she said. "I'll find him."

* * *

 **I do not own Danny Phantom or any of its characters. Neither do I own Young Justice or any of the DC Universe characters.**

 ** _Wow. Most of this story doesn't even make sense anymore. I put in stuff that I forgot about cause I didn't update fast enough ? ﾟﾘﾂ_** ** _Like, remember how I hinted at a sort of telepathic connection between Dick and Danny? Probably not gonna play a role in this at all anymore ? ﾟﾘﾅ_** ** _Well._**

 ** _Anyway, here's an update! So be happy with this crap xD_**

 ** _Hope you had fun reading or something._**

Please review! It really motivates me and always makes my day!

 **Alec**

 ** _P.S.: Guys I need to know if you want me to write more Steven Universe and who of you would like to read an SU x DP crossover. I'd also really appreciate some more feedback on my SU one-shot "Shatter Me" ? ﾟﾘﾊ_** ** _That would be great. So thanks!_**


	14. Chapter Thirteen

**Chapter Thirteen**

* * *

Dick supressed a laugh as Dick's boyfriend kept staring at him. It was hilarious.

"Wha-" He turned to Dick. "Who's this?" he asked.

Dick was grumbling under his breath while pinching the bridge of his nose with his fingers. Barbara was patting his shoulder in pity.

"That's Wally for ya," she said, looking at Danny in an "oh well" sort of way.

Wally's gaze was moving between the three. He was obviously confused. _Somebody tell him what's going on_ , Danny thought, _or he's going to short-circuit_.

"Um."

Danny was a little tired of explaining his story after telling Batman and the others, but it also annoyed him to see someone so clueless. He glanced in Dick's direction, wondering how much he could or should say. Luckily, Dick decided to speak for him.

"Since you just came here anyway - even though I did say you shouldn't - I guess I might as well introduce you two. Danny, this is Wally aka Kid Flash. Wally, this is Danny, or-" He abruptly stopped. "Oh, wait. You don't... have a secret identity yet."

Wally was staring at him again. It was a little creepy.

Dick seemed to think for a second. "It would be useful though. Any ideas?"

"Phantom," Danny immediately suggested and Dick nodded in approval.

"Isn't that... a little boring?" Barbara countered.

Danny shrugged. He liked the name, but maybe she was right. What else should he call himself though?

"Got a better idea?" he asked, tone slightly challenging.

If she noticed, he didn't show it.

"I'll think of something," she said confidently and they let the subject slide for the moment.

"So," Danny began. "Wally. Who else knows of your relationship with Dick so far?"

Both Wally and Dick turned red.

"Wha-"

"Danny, no," Dick groaned while Wally was just confused. Again. Or still?

"Relationship?" he squeaked and stared at Dick.

Barbara was having the time of her life. This was absolutely priceless.

"Yeah. He couldn't stop talking about the kiss," she explained.

"Kiss?" Wally repeated.

Dick looked like he wanted to jump out of the window, which, considering they were in space, would be a very bad idea. Danny nodded.

"Yep. You're a good kisser, apparently."

"I never said anything like that!" Dick protested at the same as Wally looked at Dick and asked, "I am?"

"Wait," Danny interrupted with wide eyes and the biggest grin on his face. "Have you really kissed?"

Wally immediately clamped his mouth shut and Dick buried his face in his hands. Danny would have laughed had he not been so surprised. He may have been making fun of Dick and Wally - was that not his job as a brother? - but he had not actually thought they had kissed. Their reaction did imply it though - a lot.

"I- um," Wally shuffled his feet a little and looked anywhere but at Dick. "It's not like I didn't like it..." he said.

Barbara and Danny shared a look.

"I-I mean, uh..." Wally looked incredibly embarassed but managed to have an even more worried expression at the same time. "Oh."

Dick was looking at the ground, his face burning and Danny suddenly felt bad. The situation had gone a little farther than he had expected it to. He caught Barbara's gaze and they came to a silent agreement.

"Maybe we should... give you some privacy," Danny said to the boys.

"Yeah. We'll be over there," Barbara added and they went to put some distance between themselves and the two lovers. "I can't believe it," she said and laughed. "I mean I _can_ , but- you know."

Danny shook his head and glanced at Dick and Wally across the room.

"Normal kids would call things like this their main life crisis. To me it seems like finding out about this would be the most normal and daily thing to happen since- Um. Yeah."

"Yeah."

He looked at Barbara and noticed her staring at him weirdly.

"Uh. You okay?" he asked.

She narrowed her eyes and tilted her head to the side, seeming to think about something.

"How about... Inviso-bill!" she exclaimed.

"What? No. That sounds terrible. Uh, no offense," he quickly replied.

Barbara rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, okay. I can see it. Then what do you think of... White Shadow?"

Danny hummed. It did sound kind of cool, but he had to think about this. He had been wondering what would happen once they - he - didn't need to deal with Vlad anymore. He lived with Batman and Robin ( _He lived with Batman and Robin, oh my god!_ ) _and_ he basically had superpowers, so maybe he could start helping them? He already knew some fighting basics and he could help save people. How cool would that be? Besides, if his own brother went out there, then why shouldn't he? And if he did... he would definitely need a name...

"Better than Inviso-bill," he decided.

"And better than Phantom," Barbara deadpanned.

Danny rolled his eyes, but smiled at her anyway.

"So. Any other ideas?"

* * *

He had never felt this embarrassed before. Okay, no, that was a lie. But he still felt pretty embarrassed. He bet he looked about as red as a tomato. Wally sure was.

"Um."

"So," Dick began. "You enjoyed it, huh?"

If possible, the blood spread even farther into his best friend's cheeks.

"Uh, yeah?" He still wasn't really looking at him. "Didn't like how you left afterwards as much though," he admitted.

Dick sighed. He had pretty much dumped Wally after it had happened. Wally hadn't said anything about it, hadn't texted him to ask why he left or pressed him to tell any other way. And Dick appreciated that. He had been trying to keep it from Bruce and Barbara and Danny - he'd felt as though everyone could see it, which, of course, was not true - and a constant reminder would not have helped the matter. He had been unsure about it - still was, if he was being honest - and hadn't wanted to have to deal with it right away.

"Yeah. Sorry about that," he apologized. Then, "I... kinda liked it, too?"

There was a long moment of silence stretching between them until they both couldn't hold it any longer.

"Can we do it again?" Wally said while Dick blurted out, "I like you."

They both stared at each other. Dick felt like laughing but he held himself back. lol

"I mean, I don't just like you, I- well I- So- um, I really like you, like, a lot and I liked the kiss and yes I would like to do it again," he rushed, wondering which one of the two was the speedster here.

He loved how Wally's face lit up like a christmas tree the moment he finished and he hated that he had to disappoint him right away.

"But," he added before Wally could do or say anything. "Not now."

Wally almost pouted.

"Why not?" he asked innocently.

"Cameras," Dick said.

"Oh."

"Yep."

The whole situation seemed incredibly awkward.

"Um."

"So."

"We should probably get back to the others," Dick suggested. "I haven't told you everything yet."

Wally frowned but nodded and they started making their way to the others.

"What exactly is he doing here again?" Wally required, motioning towards Danny. "Uh, no offense."

Danny waved him off.

"None taken."

Barbara grinned at Wally.

"Oh, you're gonna love this," she promised, snickering.

Dick rolled his eyes but couldn't hide an excited smile. He put an arm around his twin and explained.

"Turns out Danny's my long lost brother and now he's living with us," he summed up.

"Yeah, funny," Wally replied. When no one laughed with him or said anything else, he awkwardly stopped. "Are you... serious?"

"Yep," Barbara confirmed.

Wally shook his head in disbelief.

"Woah. That sounds kinda crazy, you know that? You have a brother," he laughed. "That is so cool. How did you find out?"

Dick noticed how Danny's mile tightened and he side-hugged him with the arm that was still around his brother's shoulder.

"It's a long story," he said, which naturally did not actually satisfy Wally's curiosity.

"I have time," he offered.

"Later," Dick said in a way he was sure Wally knew not to argue against.

"Okay," he agreed, probably having sensed that the subject may be an uncomfortable one. He turned to Danny and smiled a friendly smile. "You're a meta, aren't you?"

"Ghost," Danny corrected.

"Half-ghost," Dick clarified when he saw Wally's expression - not that it made his friend believe in them.

"Ghosts don't exist," he replied like he were talking to a young child.

He had of course long known how little Wally believed in things like ghosts or magic. His friend was all about science and finding a logical explanation. Dick heard his brother mumble something under his breath that sounded like "Sounds like Tucker" before he talked in a louder voice.

"They exist. _I_ exist. There's more to ghosts than scary campfire stories, you know."

Wally obviously didn't want to start a fight with the person he just met and found out was his best friend's brother, but he also seemed to struggle to find a way to convince him of his own opinion.

"How do you know?" he asked in the nicest tone he could muster.

"I am one?" Danny reminded.

"But-"

"Jeez, man, just accept it, okay?" Barbara interrupted. "He should know it, his parents were genius scientists in the ghost field. So can we please move on?"

Wally may sometimes talk a lot faster than he thought, but his brain also noticed thinks faster. Just like Dick, he must have caught the past tense in the sentence.

"Uh, y-yeah," Wally agreed.

Danny shook his arm off and used his own arms to hug himself.

"Um," He glanced at Dick awkwardly and forced a smile. "Is there a bathroom here?"

He doubted his brother actually wanted to use the bathroom, but gave him directions anyway. As soon as Danny was gone, Wally spoke up.

"What happened to him? How did you find him?"

Dick sighed and looked at where his brother had disappeared around the corner.

"Bruce said he was kidnapped when he was a baby, that's why neither of us ever knew we had a brother."

"Wow," Wally said. "And what happened after that?"

"A ghost kidnapped him," Barbara summed up, causing Wally's expression to grow frustrated.

"But- Ghosts don't exist. It's impossible!"

"I can't tell you how it works, you'll have to ask Danny, but there's apparently lots of science behind it," Dick assured and Wally huffed.

"Huh. Yeah, I'll ask him about it."

"Anyway," Dick said and roughly told Wally Danny's story – just enough for him to understand while leaving out the uncomfortable, private parts.

"Wow. That's a lot."

Dick nodded and looked at the time, noticing that Danny had been gone for a while already.

"I'll go check on him real quick..." he informed his friends and ran off.

* * *

He quietly observed the scene in front of him.

 _"Stolen? Did anyone see who it was?"_

 _"Indeed. And you have met the thief before."_

All the different options were visible to him, but he was certain that this was the one to happen. It was the fastest and easiest way, he knew, but it also carried many risks. Sadly, there too many unknown factors and paths he was not able to foresee and so he could do nothing but watch and hope for the best.

The screen started showing a different scene now, this one from the present time. He sighed, feeling slightly guilty for what the young Daniel had been forced to go through, but he quickly scolded himself for it. He could not get attached. His job did not allow it, or else the whole time stream would be endangered. It was sometimes that he so badly wanted to take pity on a being and alter their fate.

 _"I miss them so much."_

 _"I know."_

 _"It hurts."_

 _"Yeah. I get how that feels."_

 _"I just want them back..."_

But he could not. Not ever.

* * *

 **I do not own Danny Phantom or any of its characters. Neither do I own Young Justice or any of the DC Universe characters.**

 ** _I am aware that this update is late. But. It is an update and an update means we're still going. I hope you had fun reading! Please, please, pleeeaaase leave a review!_**

 **Did you like it?**

 **What could I do better?**

 **What should Danny's hero name be?** ** _I need original ideas that you haven't seen or used before. I will give you credit of course and I will not use any ideas without explicit permission :) (This means that if you comment a name as a guest, you need to leave your name and permission, or I won't be able to use the idea and give you credit.)  
_**

 _(Also, please consider taking a look at my Undertale fanfiction "The Meaning Of Souls". That would be amazing.)_

 **Alec :)**


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